


You've Taught Me

by blothhound



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Bad Flirting, Denial of Feelings, First Kiss, Fluff, More tags to be added, Not completely canon, Other, Slow Build, Suggestive Themes, based on canon, bloodhound and elliott's mom get along very well, bloodhound definitely doesn't wanna fall in love but whoops, bloodhound face hc, bloodhound has no social skills, bloodhound is TOUCH STARVED PLEASE FEED THEM ELLIOTT, bloodhound is kinda cold and doesn't like love :(, both of them drink a lot, do people even use "fluff" anymore, elliott brings up pork chops at least once every chapter, elliott is extremely flirty and desperate, i constantly go back and edit, like now we got the short so i mean this isn't entirely accurate, located in king's canyon, miragehound, mostly just exploring their relationship, not too ooc i hope, sometimes bloodhound flirts back, special chapter at end :)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-06
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2020-04-07 13:16:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 43,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19085812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blothhound/pseuds/blothhound
Summary: The Apex Games can mean anything for someone. Most people only join for fame and money. Some come to feel alive as they technically slaughter other players. Others just want an adrenaline rush. Or it's all three reasons.But Elliott Witt has his own reason for joining. Sure, he wants the extra money and to be admired, but he suspects that the location of the Games is very closely related to his past.After he is shown mercy by the most ruthless Legend, he begins to find out more about himself- and Bloodhound's very secretive backstory as well. Falling in love isn't the main thing on either of their minds (well, maybe it is for Elliott), but Elliott can't ignore the fact that the other's mask and reticent personality is mildly attractive, and Bloodhound can't avoid how their heart begins to beat faster whenever Elliott cracks a stupid joke or fixes his hair for the millionth time during a gun fight.---https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oirk6gxAFnbPkXEYhIkBsA MirageHound playlist based on the story for those who are interested!





	1. That You Aren't as Scary as the Rumors Said You Were

**Author's Note:**

> I have not written a serious fic in a few years! Recently I've become obsessed with Apex and of course all the characters, so I began to think up this fic between my two favorites. I'll try to update as often as I can, but I hope you enjoy.

Viewing the battlefield laid out before him, Elliott Witt realized how screwed he really was. His hologram acted out an exaggerated, dramatic death a few feet away from him; he had sent it out as a decoy after being knocked down by a shooter nearby to avoid immediate elimination. With the double distracting his opponents, Elliott quickly crawled into a group of bushes, hidden from the enemies' eyes. Elliott sweated profusely and attempted to ignore how the scraggly, dead bushes scratched against his face.

He hoped that somehow either Pathfinder or Wraith, his squadmates, would realize that he was downed and needed help, but they were preoccupied by their own gunfight a few houses away against an enemy squad.

Elliott waited for a few minutes, and eventually, the gunshots ceased. He expected his allies to come to his aid any second and save him. He considered calling out for them, but decided against it. _If I make any noise,_ he thought to himself, _another squad might hear me._ Where were his teammates?

"Allfather, bless me with sight!"

Elliott froze. He knew exactly who those words belonged to. Although he was the newest Legend to join the ranks and to compete in the Games, any wise knew who that voice belonged to. Many of the veteran Legends had warned him of the ruthless hunter, who did not fear death. Elliott passed it off and said something cocky like, "So what? They're probably all bark and no bite," with a reference to their dog-like moniker. Now that he was facing them, Elliott realized that he would have no way to defend himself against his opponent.

He held onto a sliver of hope as he stealthily pulled his holopad from his backpack and checked the stats of his squadmates. In bright red letters, the word "ELIMINATED" flashed next to both Wraith and Pathfinder's names. They were probably already being carted away to the Apex Games medical center. Elliott was completely and utterly alone, and the only thing he could do now was to wait for his own demise.

Elliott recalled that his mother was watching this all unfold back on Solace, since it was his first Game and all. She especially wanted to see how he would utilize the holographic technology he and she had engineered together. Elliott knew it would be incredible, and a bit unrealistic, to win his first Apex Game, but he still felt guilty that he could not impress his mother with his skills and her devices. Besides, being seen at your weakest state is downright embarrassing.

A large, black bird flew past the bushes Elliott was hiding in, its wings blowing a gust of air towards his face. He stayed very, very still. Maybe the hunter would completely pass by him by. Hopefully he’d get lucky and they wouldn’t see him hiding here pitifully. Perhaps they’d be sparing and even make his elimination quick and less embarrassing than it already was.

It was eerily silent. As Elliott held his breath, he could hear shoes running across the sand, gradually making their way closer and closer. It was agonizing to wait this long. Peeking his head out of the bush, Elliott got a glimpse of his worst nightmare in this moment.

The first thing that caught his eye were those piercing red eyes. They seemed to glow, radiating light as they stared in his direction. The hunter was still running, straight towards Elliott’s hiding place.

They were fast. Fast fast fast. Just like Elliott’s own heartbeat. Despite how desperately he hoped and prayed, he knew the hunter could see him hiding pitifully under the dead, bare bushes. Even if they weren’t the one who knocked him down, the adrenaline of eliminating another contestant would probably be enough for them to take the kill. The feeling of blood on their hands, blood from a living, breathing human being was addicting. It was shocking how willingly people signed up for the Apex Games. Although it wasn't legitimate killing, the thrill of scaring another must have been what attracted a lot of adrenaline junkies and maniacs who joined. Elliott didn't have a say in the matter, since he himself was participating, but he did have his own reasons.

Elliott shut his eyes tightly. He figured the fear factor of encountering the merciless hunter would be much lower if he could not see their gleaming eyes. Getting eliminated from the Game didn’t hurt or anything, but it was still terrifying, especially if people had warned you many times over of the person about to eliminate you.

The footsteps were louder now, and so much closer. Any moment now it would be over and he would somehow get transported back to the medical center in case he happened to have accumulated any wounds. His mother would witness his lame defeat.

…

 _I’m ready to die now,_ Elliott thought to himself as he clenched his teeth. _Please just hurry up. I’ve got better things to do than sit here and wait for you to take all the glory in making me look pathetic. Like, I could be at home eating pork chops right now… Yummy. It’s been a while since I’ve-_

His train of thought was interrupted as he heard footsteps approach right in front of him. Elliott slowly opened his eyes.

Two boots, coated in mud and dust.

Two legs, covered by what appeared to be layers of clothing.

A brown jacket, adorned with various pockets.

A mask.

Two red eyes.

_The hunter the Gods have sent._

Elliott's pursuer was stopped in front of him, looking straight down at him. He wasn’t sure how to react. Were they deciding the most humiliating way to end him? Figuring out where to puncture him with their hunting knife that looked so dreadfully sharp and lethal?

The scarlet glow of their eyes suddenly vanished as quickly as it had appeared, yet the hunter remained standing.

Elliott could not see their eyes behind their mask. He assumed he didn't really want to, either.

 _What is this person trying to do? Just kill me already. Someone come shoot the fool! They're standing still, looking down at my defenseless body. An easy shot for you._ Elliott pleaded silently, knowing full well that no one would be able to help him. The hunter could have eyes on the back of their head, for crying out loud.

A sudden movement from the hunter made Elliott's heart nearly stop. They dug through their backpack, _probably looking for a gun!_

A med kit was dropped down, creating a dull thud against the dry soil.

The hunter quickly glanced around, then squatted down in front of Elliott. They picked up the med kit and, without warning, stabbed it into Elliott's arm.

"Hey, HEY!" Elliott exclaimed, alarmed. A gloved hand pushed against his mouth to silence him as the piercing needle of the med kit dug deeper into his skin.

Elliott nearly fainted. The shock of the most feared Legend appearing in front of him, then saving him...? Maybe he was imagining this. It couldn’t possibly be real.

Soon, the mysterious hunter pulled away and Elliott could stand up on his own. "Why...?" He questioned, still a bit uneasy. Elliott was on high alert. He didn't know when, or if, the hunter would turn their back and eliminate him.

Elliott stared into his savior's eyes. Or more so, their emotionless, hollow mask eyes.

He could hear them take in a quick breath through the mask.

"I need you alive," they replied bluntly.

Elliott gulped. Their voice was ominous, almost sinister.

"For what," Elliott asked. "To take me out to dinner?"

"I could kill you right here." Their knife was quickly raised very, very close to Elliott’s throat. Way too close for comfort.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. No more teasing or flirting. Serious business now." Elliott held up his hands helplessly until the hunter backed away and began walking off in a seemingly random direction.

"Uh, you never answered my question," Elliott said.

They did not turn back around to answer. "It does not matter right now. Follow me, keep your mouth shut."

"Okay, secretive hunter," Elliott teased. "I'm Mirage." He decided not to let them know his real name. They could be a trained assassin and come kill him later while he slept peacefully, for all he knew. The flirting didn’t exactly help to ensure his safety. He couldn't help it; it was a bit of a defense mechanism.

It took a moment for the "secretive hunter" to respond. It almost looked like they were staring intently at the ground. "I am Bloodhound."

As they said their name, Elliott noticed the heavy accent more clearly.

"So where are you from? Around here? This ghost town seems like a perfect place for a creepy person like y-"

"Footsteps. Approximately thirty seconds ago."

"Huh?" Elliott chuckled nervously. "From Footsteps? That sounds like... a nice place. I guess. You came here thirty seconds ago?"

"No. Can you be quiet? Someone is nearby." Taking out a rather large gun, Bloodhound turned towards a building. "Bless me with sight."

Elliott watched them quickly run into the building. It seemed like they knew exactly what, or who, was in there.

"Buddy?" Elliott took out a pistol and slowly crept after them towards the building.

Suddenly, shots rang out from within. Elliott could hear a death box falling to the ground. People were running about inside the building, and one pair of feet were getting closer to the door he was standing near.

"Mirage! Get her!" Bloodhound's muffled voice yelled from inside.

Panicking a bit, Elliott began to shoot his pistol as soon as the doors opened by him. The sound of footsteps stopped.

Elliott opened his eyes, and realized he had squeezed them shut in the rush of the moment. He felt a hand be placed on his shoulder and he jumped.

"The Gods spoke truthfully." Bloodhound took their hand off Elliott's shoulder, noticing him jump when they touched him.

"The Gods?" Elliott stared down at the death box with a picture of Lifeline on the top of it.

"You are the Apex Champions!" A loud voice boomed from the sky.

Elliott looked around, shocked. "Champions? We're the CHAMPIONS?!" His voice rose an octave near the end.

His first time as a Champion! They were Champions!

Bloodhound did little to celebrate. "It was fate that we won."

Elliott did not hear them, for he was too busy jumping around and yelling. "Mom, Mom! Are you watching! I'm finally a Champion!"

 

\---

 

Elliott did not remember much of what happened after that. Everything was happening so fast, and the adrenaline was still gushing through his body. He and Bloodhound got on a large ship and were brought back to the Apex Games HQ, and were met with cheers of applause.

"I have been a pretty good guy lately. Maybe the karma is coming back. All these cute people greeting me... congratulating me." Elliott smiled and waved at the passing people.

Quite opposite of Elliott, Bloodhound kept their head up and eyes forward. They did not look at anyone, and seemed very casual. Winning was not a big deal to them anymore.

After they walked into a more private room with all the contenders of the game, Elliott saw his squadmates Pathfinder and Wraith.

"Hey guys!" He half smiled at them. “I'm sorry I couldn't be there for that last fight… I was knocked down!" Elliott's voice was still loud from the excitement of winning.

Pathfinder glanced at Wraith and then back to Elliott. "Sorry, friend. But you were trailing behind. We couldn't go back to get you."

Elliott shrugged. "Was that it? I'm sorry, I guess?" He pretended that he wasn't hurt by the comment. He was trying his best, it's not his fault he was new to the whole idea of killing each other for fame and riches, even if it was like a glorified game of tag.

"You won somehow anyway, so what does it matter?" Wraith did not make eye contact with Elliott. He could practically feel the hostility radiating off of her. Although they did not speak much with each other before and during the Game, he could tell she was a sore loser.

The conversation trailed off and soon it was Bloodhound and Elliott together again, with everyone else talking to each other, some stealing loathsome glances at the two-person squad and others giving them wholehearted smiles.

Bloodhound stood still, silent, almost like they were uninterested.

"Hey, buddy," Elliott said. "Mind if I ask you some questions?"

The hunter did not turn to face him. "As long as they are not stupid questions."

"I don't think they're stupid," said Elliott. "But first off, how come you don't usually have squadmates?" Many had told Elliott how Bloodhound was a loner, on top of also being the Legend with the most wins and kills. They were never with other people, and that's what made them so amazing and also very, very frightening.

"I prefer to work alone. Others cannot keep up with me."

"Then why did you bring me with you?"

Bloodhound took a moment to answer. They seemed to do that a lot, think over their words before speaking. "I was told to."

Told to? Elliott was a bit suspicious. "By who? Did my mom pay you to save me?"

"The Gods." Bloodhound began to walk towards the exit past the contenders and fans.

Elliott followed and said, "the Gods, huh? Did they say, 'hey, this guy looks pathetic, why don't you save him the embarrassment and help him?'"

"They did not say much. Just to not kill you."

Walking outside, the two Legends were met with a strong wind that kicked up sand, swirling around them. Elliott assumed that Bloodhound wanted to get away from all the people surrounding them inside.

"You're very spooky. I like that. Very mysterious, shady... attractive." Standing next to Bloodhound, Elliott could feel the height difference between them. They were shorter than him by about an inch or two, but they had much wider shoulders than Elliott and that intimidated him much more than if they were taller.

Bloodhound did not respond to the flirty comment.

“Where'd your little bird go?”

“You mean Artur? He knows his way home,” said Bloodhound.

“Can you teach me the way to your home too?” Elliott smirked.

Once again, Bloodhound ignored him.

"How about we get a drink? On me. I work at a bar a few blocks away." Elliott walked farther out of the exit, towards the sand covered and run-down town that surrounded Apex Headquarters.

"I do not drink."

"You don't do a lot of stuff, it seems like. Let's hang out, get to know each other."

"I do not think we have to be together constantly,” said Bloodhound. “And hanging out with others is one of the things I do not do."

“Did the Gods say we can't chill or something?"

Another pause from Bloodhound. "They did not say much. I told you already what they said.”

"Let's have some fun then. We just won, aren't you totally excited?" Elliott still had gooseflesh from the adrenaline of winning, even if he only got one elimination. She was already low anyway from Bloodhound, so it could technically be counted as an assist...

"It is not exciting after you win all the time." Bloodhound said as they began to follow Elliott towards town.

Elliott rolled his eyes. "Haha, are you actually bragging?"

 

\---

 

Elliott and Bloodhound sat at the bar. While Elliott observed the people around him, Bloodhound ran their finger around the top of a small shot glass. The glass was still full, despite the pair being there for almost an hour.

Glancing at the tablet showing the news on the table, Elliott saw one of his greatest fantasies.

**"Newbie by the Name of Mirage Wins the 21st Apex Games!"**

"Bloodhound, Bloodhound, Bloodhound!" Elliott was transfixed. "I'm in the news!"

Bloodhound nodded. They were not about to rain on the "newbie's" parade. They also noticed a subtitle for another article called **"Bloodhound and Mirage, a Developing Affair?"** Well, people will be people, and assume the most dramatic things. Reluctantly, they held back a scoff in the back of their throat. _What a nosy bunch of heimskingjar,_ they thought. "You're very brave. And honorable," said Bloodhound.

"Well, I don't know about _brave,_ " Elliott chuckled. His cheeks were warm from the alcohol, and he sipped at his third shot. "Tell me what you mean."

"After I saved you and healed you, you very well could have eliminated me then. But you did not. I admire that," said Bloodhound.

Elliott felt his face tingle. "I'm not that kind of person," he said. "Plus, I was scared to death of you. Practically paralyzed."

"But that did not stop you from flirting with me."

The blush formed on Elliott's cheeks. "I, um..." He had no explanation. He did sound extremely desperate in that moment. Maybe he thought flirting would lower the chance of him getting totally murdered right then and there.

Elliott thought he heard a chuckle come from Bloodhound. "You are special," they said.

Were they actually drunk? Elliott did not see them take a single sip of their drink all night. They seemed more light-hearted and talkative now than earlier.

Elliott was a bit speechless from the comment. "Special, huh..."

His heart squeezed a bit. Just earlier, his mother had commented on his brothers, how they were "incredible, special." He idly wiped at the condensation forming around his shot glass.

Bloodhound sensed how the mood changed around Elliott. "Excuse me, bartender. Another one of your richest for my squadmate here."

The bartender slid the glass towards Elliott. He picked it up slowly and tilted it towards Bloodhound. "Cheers, to us. And those Gods of yours that, for some reason, decided to introduce us. Almost like some crazy, angelic mixer."

In his heart, Elliott knew Bloodhound was smiling now, underneath that cold, unemotional mask.

"Cheers, Mirage." Bloodhound tapped their shot glass against his, the noise ringing through the air.

"You can call me Elliott," Elliott said after sipping the drink.

"Cheers, Elliott."

Despite the feeling of a new bond forming between the two Legends, Bloodhound did not tell Elliott their real name in that moment, even though Elliott expected it. They did not drink a single drop of their alcohol that night, because that would require them to take their mask off, Elliott assumed. They remained solemn, with very few responses, even after Elliott drunkenly told stories of his mother's inventions and his childhood.

But somehow, he had a strange feeling, that the two of them were inseparable from that moment on.

 

\---

 

"How can I contact you?" Elliott's words slurred at the end.

Bloodhound looked in Elliott's direction. Their masked eyes reflected the moonlight. "Contact me?"

Elliott felt a bit hurt. Maybe they did not want to talk to him, and that their acquaintanceship was only during Apex Games, or even just during that one Game.

"Like... To hang out?" Elliott twiddled with his scarf. "We don't have to, I just was wondering."

"Of course," Bloodhound said. They walked closer to Elliott and pulled out a holopad. Almost everyone had one of these, it had practically everything on it from being able to call and message anyone, to taking amazing pictures. There was even an app to deliver food and items to any desirable location.

Elliott pulled out his own device and they held them close together. This was the way to exchange information to each other's little holopads. Thinking deeper about it, Elliott thought it was a bit romantic. Robots sitting close together and telling about themselves to each other… how many shots did he drink again?

It took a few moments to share info, and Elliott urged the handheld machine to work faster. With Bloodhound only a few inches away, Elliott could smell their musk. Herby. Not dusty and stinging like he thought it would be. Their mask so close to his face intimidated him a bit, but it also made his heart pull against his chest. In his drunken state, Elliott just wanted to see their face, their hair under the natural light of the moon.  He wanted to fall into their arms, into anyone's arms, craving the touch of another human. If the holopads took any longer, Elliott thought he would've wrapped his arms around Bloodhound right then and there.

A little _ding!_ emitted from the holopads, signaling that they were done. Bloodhound put theirs back into a pocket and looked at Elliott. Or, Elliott thought they were looking at him. Their head was facing him. But he would never really know as long as they kept that mask on.

“I will see you soon. I have a feeling the Gods will not keep us separated for long,” Bloodhound said.

“Oh, even if the Gods keep us away from each other, I'll find you somehow,” Elliott flirted. It sounded more creepy than flirty, though.

They stood facing each other.

“I would also do the same,” said Bloodhound. “Do you need some help getting home?”

“Would you help me get into bed, too?” When that got no response out of them, Elliott continued. “Nah, no, I think I'll be fine… I'm just a few blocks away.”

“Alright then. Farewell, Elliott.” They waved at him, then walked off down the street.

Elliott watched them until they disappeared, then stood there for a while longer. He was wasted, but he thought for sure that the little reply Bloodhound had made to his creepy comment was some form of flirting. Or maybe they were hinting at their tracking skills and if Elliott said any other comments like that then they would come and kill him with no remorse.

Nah.

Walking home, Elliott checked the time on his holopad. He squinted at the screen. _1:24 AM._ Just looking at the time made Elliott feel sleepy.

Eventually, he got home after a long walk. Actually, it was more like a long stumble home. Slipping off his shoes, he collapsed onto the bed. He had not even changed out of his Apex suit before he was fast asleep.


	2. That It Is Okay to Open up to You

"Elliott! I was just about to call you."

Elliott couldn’t hold back a smile as he listened to his mother go on and on about how jubilant she was to watch him win the Apex Game from about a week ago.

Elliott hadn’t heard anything from Bloodhound since the Game, but that could also partially be his fault since he didn’t try to contact them yet. He figured they didn't want him bugging them. It still made him feel a little lonely.

"I was surprised too," admitted Elliott.

"And who was that scary person? He helped you and everything," she said. "Did you thank him?"

"Mom, it's actually 'they' and not 'he,'" said Elliott.

"Oh, I see! That doesn't change the fact that you should thank them for what they did."

Elliott came to realize he didn’t outright tell Bloodhound "thank you," but he did buy them a drink… did that count? Even though they didn't really drink it. He made a mental note to express his gratitude the next time he saw them.

"Um, yeah I did, Mom." He figured it would be better to say he had rather than be lectured about how alcohol is not a valid appreciation gift. Elliott personally thought alcohol was good for just about anything, but he was a tad biased considering he was a bartender.

Elliott peered out his bedroom window. The surrounding houses were covered with a thin layer of sand, like always. Now that he thought about it, he guessed that this entire planet was covered in sand. His own home planet was more lively, with an abundant source of trees and water. The only notable form of nature here was dead bushes. It was sort of depressing, and Elliott felt a bit homesick.

"That’s good, Eli. I bet your brothers are proud of you too," Elliott's mom praised.

"Mhm, are they?" He mused with a scratch of his beard. Of course his brothers would be proud, they were some of the most supportive people Elliott had ever known. His whole family was incredibly supportive and close, but she still talked about his three brothers in the present tense. Elliott just didn't have the heart to correct her.

"Yes, Elliott. We'll always be proud of you," she reminded him fondly.

Elliott wanted nothing more than to be next to his mother and feel her comforting arms closed around him, sheltering him from the unforgiving world.

"How has the business been," said Elliott, eager to change the subject. "Any new doo-dads you built?"

There was the sound of fingers typing on a keyboard on the other end of the phone. "Not recently," Elliott's mother said. "Just focusing on the shop and stuff, but since you won, there's been so many new buyers. You're pretty much a mascot for the business, Elliott."

"Naturally I would be, with the face, the hair, the charisma…"

"I'm glad you think so highly of yourself," she laughed on the other side of the phone. "Hey, how's the pork chop recipe working for you?"

" _Delicioso_ , I wish I could have them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner." On queue, Elliott’s stomach began to growl. "Hey, Mom, I'll call you again soon. I've gotta go out and get a bite to eat."

"Oh, alright," she sounded somewhat sad, which made Elliott feel extremely guilty. "Come visit me soon! Maybe bring along your new friend, too."

"I promise to soon. I love you, Mom," said Elliott.

"I love you too, Elliott. Buh-bye!" _Click._

Oh, how he missed his mom! She was the one that gave him the holographic devices and told him to follow his dreams, but he missed the Sunday night pork chops, as well as the familiar feeling of home.

What made him ache, though, was that she still held onto an obscure belief that his brothers were still out there somewhere.

They were announced as Missing in Action years ago during the Frontier War. They hadn’t uncovered any evidence that they were alive, but she still had hope they could be out there.

Maybe that was the reason she had let him join the Apex Games in the first place. The Games just so happened to be on the same planet as one of the major battles of the Frontier War, probably for publicity or in hopes of attracting some history buffs. Elliott had seen various gift shops around to commemorate the battle that took place here.

The battle where his brothers were last heard of.

Maybe she knew there wasn’t the same risk of him going missing here, and she had sent Elliott in her place to find clues since she had to stay home at the business. His mother was nudging him to come here to seek out anything he could in her own, indirect way.

Elliott honestly couldn't blame her, that was the main reason he came to the Games originally. He didn't want to admit that to his mom, especially since he wasn't having any luck so far.

Deep in his gut, he had a very strong feeling that something would turn up eventually.

 

\---

 

Elliott slipped on a dark grey v-neck shirt and some sweatpants. He reckoned that the paparazzi wouldn’t be after him yet, so he dressed casually.

He was just going out to get something to eat, but he still wore a shirt that showed off his body a bit. Elliott couldn't help it, he had a nice figure and he enjoyed showing it off and getting stared at by strangers.

Stepping outside of his loft house, Elliott was met with a soft breeze. It was sunny and warm; a great day was on the horizon.

Once again his stomach rumbled, reminding him that he really needed some food. Elliott began his walk downtown, where most of the shops were located.

Checking the time on his holopad, Elliott saw it was still a little late for breakfast. Although he figured he could still get away with eating brunch instead… or maybe just lunch. So many different meals to choose from! He loved it, since it meant more chances to eat throughout the day.

As he made his way into the more crowded part of town, every now and then someone would wave at Elliott. It made his heart soar, if he was being completely honest. Attention, attention, attention! Even if it wasn't the main reason he came to the Apex Games, he sure loved being gawked at and having people talking all about him.

"Mirage, can I get a picture?" A young man, who looked to be about in his early twenties, held up a holopad.

Elliott smiled and slipped bunny ears behind the man's head as the camera flashed.

"Thanks a lot!"

Elliott's ego was through the roof now. Oh man, did he feel good.

Soon, he approached a nice café. He decided to get a donut and be on his way back home. It was his day off from the bar and the Games, so he could spend the whole day doing whatever he wanted. Maybe lift some weights, run a mile, do a bit of exercise…

 _Don't lie to yourself, buddy_ , Elliott nastily thought to himself. _You're gonna go home and sit on your ass and watch a whole season of some drama show_.

 _Um, actually…_ He had no response for himself. He knew he was right.

Elliott bought a glazed donut with some kind of cream on the inside. _Yummy…_

Walking out of the shop, Elliott looked to his right and left. Maybe he could do some shopping, or go see a movie? He didn't think Bloodhound would be up to hang out today. Elliott felt lonely without having a real friend around h-

The bag holding his delicious little donut was gone. _Zoom_ , right out of his hands, and Elliott saw a black bird was quickly flying down the crowded street with the bag in its beak.

"HEY!" Elliott yelled at the bird. When it, of course, didn't answer, Elliott began to chase it.

Luckily it was flying low, but it was fast. It zipped between pedestrians and they backed off to the sides of the sidewalk as Elliott ran past them.

The thought of buying another donut didn't pass through Elliott's mind. He was too busy thinking about how furious and disappointed he was. That donut looked so good. It was the last kind of that donut in the shop. He wanted that one, none of the others.

As Elliott was running, someone else was running towards the bird, too. Except if they kept running, they and Elliott would tumble right into each other.

Elliott slowed down and caught his breath.

"Artur, no! Drop it," they said to the bird. "What do you have in your beak? Drop it!"

Elliott realized that their accent sounded awfully familiar, and their face too… well, their mask was the familiar part.

"Bloodhound!" Elliott waved and began to walk to them.

The raven perched on Bloodhound's outstretched arm, still holding the bag. "So he did find you," said Bloodhound. They were wearing what looked like the same outfit from the Games, but later on, Elliott realized there were subtle differences to this new jacket.

"Find me?" Elliott felt perspiration forming on his forehead from running, or maybe he was just nervous. "Aw, you mean you taught your raven to find me?"

Bloodhound ran their finger along the top of Artur's head. "Do not make it sound like I was thinking about you. I was trying to teach him to find someone other than myself."

Elliott smirked. "Oh, sure… sure you weren’t." He approached Bloodhound and glared at the raven.

"Hey, _bird_ -"

"His name is Artur," corrected Bloodhound.

"Okay, _Artur_ ," said Elliott. "May I please have my donut back?"

The bird's beady eyes stared at Elliott.

Artur dropped the bag suddenly, and it fell to the ground before Elliott could catch it.

Bloodhound let out a laugh, and Elliott felt somewhat shocked. He also felt his heart pinch a little when he heard their laugh for the first time. It was very quiet, soft. Absolutely adorable.

"You feel emotions other than 'hunt, hunt, hunt?'" Elliott picked up the bag with the donut and brushed the sand off.

"I am not completely emotionless. I am a bit saddened that you feel that way about me," said Bloodhound.

"Hey, I've only really known you for a day, and we met during a violent Apex Game, so I barely know anything about you," said Elliott.

"Do you only know how to speak in romantic phrases?" Bloodhound found some kind of humor in teasing Elliott.

"Oh, baby, sweetheart, honeybun, that's only for you," Elliott said over dramatically.

Bloodhound turned around and began to walk away with Artur perched on their shoulder.

"Hey, I'm sorry," Elliott pleaded. "Come back!"

"I was about to invite you to my house, but I see you are a little too excited for that," said Bloodhound. They continued to walk in the opposite direction.

"No, no… I am not," Elliott tried to copy Bloodhound's cold exterior and proper way of speech as he followed them. "I moderately wish to come over. Only a little do I wish you would invite me to your manor, your area of residence."

"Now you are not making any sense," said Bloodhound. It was a bit cute when Elliott begged. They quickly caught themself thinking that and scowled for even feeling that way about a fool like Elliott.

"Please, Bloodhound! I'm extremely bored and have nothing else to do today." Elliott sounded completely desperate, but he didn't care at this point. He felt some kind of pull to be near Bloodhound right now. He wanted to find out everything about them, be next to them, talk to them.

"Should we let him, Artur?" Bloodhound moved their gaze to their avian companion and then back to Elliott. "Alright, you may come over."

Elliott grinned. "I knew you would give in," he said.

Bloodhound stayed silent and waited for Elliott to catch up to them.

 

\---

 

"This is your humble _casa?_ " As soon as Elliott stepped in, he was met with the sharp smell of… perfume? No, it smelled way too natural to be perfume. It reminded him of when they hung out after the last Game, and he could smell their scent.

Bloodhound stood with their arms crossed near the door. _It would have been wise to pick up a bit before he came,_ they thought. "I do not think I need to give you a tour. I trust you enough, so feel free to look around, and try not to touch anything."

Elliott's gaze traveled all around the living room which they were standing in. It was completely unlike anything he had ever seen. Plants. That was the first thing he noticed. There were lots of plants. Not many flowering plants, but lots of leafy ones.

Bloodhound watched Elliott look around the room in deep interest. It was strange to have someone else in their house. Usually, it was just them and Artur. The house felt smaller somehow, now that there was another person inside it.

Elliott sat on the beige couch against one of the walls. It had a blanket thrown over it with a variety of patterns. Bloodhound's house wasn't exactly the tidiest, as Elliott would have thought. They just seemed like a neat freak, with their formal speech and all. But it for sure wasn't as messy as Elliott's house. Their house was a hell of a lot bigger than his, too! Winning so many Apex Games could kick you up to the upper class if you were good enough at saving your money. Elliott had recently gotten a check in the mail for a few grand from the Apex HQ. It would probably be all gone within a few weeks, though.

"Would you like some tea?" Bloodhound began to walk towards the kitchen. "Or I could make some coffee if you would prefer."

"Some tea would be great," said Elliott.

As Bloodhound left the room, Elliott took a closer look at the decor in the house. There were framed pictures of symbols and what looked like cave paintings of people, some natural looking rocks, and a perch where Artur was sitting and staring at Elliott. Bloodhound must’ve really like their bird, since there were other perches located across the walls, and even a specially shaped shelf for Artur to sleep on with a nest and everything. Elliott was sure he saw a mini pillow peeking over the side of the nest.

Bloodhound stayed in the kitchen while the tea brewed. It was sort of a last-second decision to let Elliott come over, but it would be rude to not let him come over eventually. And, for some unknown reason, Bloodhound wanted to let Elliott in and see this part of them. It made them feel a bit vulnerable to have him be able to see where they lived, but also somewhat content. They were glad that Elliott actually wanted to spend time with them, and that he wasn’t scared off by their mask or cold exterior.

Elliott definitely intrigued Bloodhound. That was rare, for no one was really interesting enough. At least that’s what Bloodhound thought. They thought there was no purpose to make friends or get to know people when the Gods had made them a hunting machine designed to win the Apex Games. Their destiny was already laid out for them, so why had the Gods told Bloodhound to save Elliott and stick around with him?

Elliott was a bit of a bother to them, too. The way he was so desperate and flirty to them, even though he had never seen their actual face and knew practically nothing about them. He was wasting his time with them. It was disgusting how Bloodhound felt their own face warm up when Elliott flashed a smile or threw a little flirt out at random times. There was no need to be with anyone. They were perfectly content being alone, with Artur.

But something made Bloodhound’s heart speed up when they saw Elliott running towards them earlier that day. The way their palms got sweaty under their gloves when Elliott offered to buy them a drink the other night. Spending all of the last few nights thinking about holding Elliott in their arms and protecting him while he got used to the harsh reality of the Apex Games.

It made Bloodhound feel weak, in both a lovey-dovey and powerless way. They could not be seen as weak. What would the Gods think if they saw their little hunting pawn turn into lovestruck, emotional mush?

But why had the Gods brought them together?

After a few minutes, Bloodhound decided the tea was brewed enough and they brought the two mugs out to the living room where Elliott was still sitting.

As they handed the tea to Elliott, he smiled up at them. “Thanks a lot,” said Elliott. “Also… thank you for everything during the Game.”

Bloodhound turned their eyes away and thought about how to respond. “It is no problem.” They sat next to Elliott on the couch. Not too close, but close enough where they would touch if either one of them moved slightly.

“So,” Elliott took a gulp of the tea. “Ow! Hot.”

“I should have warned you, I am sorry.” Bloodhound could not really feel the warmth of the cup through their gloves. They should have been more careful, more aware.

“It’s alright,” said Elliott. He took a careful sip. “Tell me all about the Gods,” he said suddenly.

Bloodhound looked at Elliott, expecting him to say something else, but silence proceeded. “You want to know about my Gods?”

“I do! They seem interesting… and high and mighty. Although I guess they would be since they are Gods.”

“Well…” Bloodhound ran their finger around the handle of the cup somewhat shyly. “The Gods and the Allfather have your whole life laid out for you. You have a certain destiny that they have given you. Personally, I was sent to compete in the Apex Games. I was given special skills by them to help me exceed. I know I cannot be stopped until the Gods will it, so that is why I participate.”

“Wow,” Elliott stared at Bloodhound, his eyes full of wonder. “Do you, like, chat with them and stuff?”

“I cannot often talk to them. Only in dire situations when they need to inform something to me right away do they come and speak to me. They mostly show themselves through nature and symbols,” said Bloodhound.

“Is that what the symbols on the walls and around the house are for?”

Bloodhound did not want to answer this many questions about themself. It felt almost like bragging. It was strange to have someone else know what kept you afloat and how you saw the world. “No, those all have different meanings, releasing different powers.”

“It’s interesting,” said Elliott. “How did you find out about all this stuff? It sounds very old.”

Bloodhound shook their head. This was a polite enough place to stop. They did not feel like going even deeper into their personal past.

Elliott sensed that he had said something wrong, and he bit the inside of his cheek out of guilt and to keep his blabber-mouth shut.

“What time is it?” Bloodhound stood up from the couch and held their hand out, offering to take Elliott’s empty cup back to the kitchen.

Elliott handed his cup to Bloodhound and took his holopad out of his pocket to check the time. “About 6 PM already,” he said. “Is it time for me to go?”

“Oh, no, you do not have to leave unless you want to.” _Stay as long as you want,_ thought Bloodhound. “But I was thinking about ordering food or something along those lines. You must be hungry.”

Elliott’s stomach started to make noises again. That donut wasn’t as filling as he thought it would be. “Now that you mention it, I guess I am,” he said.

“Alright,” said Bloodhound, as they began to scroll through one of the many apps to order food. “What would you like?”

“Actually…” Elliott could not hide his smile. “How about I make you my grandpa’s famous pork chops?”

Bloodhound lowered their eyes as they felt their heart soar up to their throat. “Make some food?”

“Yeah, unless you don’t want me to. I’m not forcing you to eat my amazing food or anything.”

“No, I would love for you to make pork chops,” said Bloodhound. "It would be a change from the junk food I usually eat."

“Coolio! I mean, cool,” Elliott was about to jump off the couch. He got some kind of jittery feeling within him. He was gonna make the best pork chops ever for Bloodhound and impress them. “Oh, Elliott,” he imagined Bloodhound saying. “These are absolutely wonderful. Please, live with me and cook all my food and become my handsome hus-”

“I might have to go out and buy some of the ingredients,” said Bloodhound. “I am going to be honest, I'm not much of a cook at all so my cupboards are pretty bare.”

“I’ll go to the store for you. Don’t worry, I’ll be back in a jiffy.” Elliott walked towards the front entrance.

“What’s a ‘jiffy?’” Bloodhound felt a little bashful. They did not know some of the words Elliott used, especially when he was drunk and telling Bloodhound all about his life (he mentioned something about a “meme?”), but Bloodhound assumed it was because they were more of an old-fashioned person. They did not often check the media or stay up to date with popular trends.

“A jiffy… like soon. Quicker than soon. I’ll be back before you can say ‘pork chop.’”

“‘Pork chop,’” said Bloodhound.

“Not so literally. I’ll be back soon!” And then he was out the door.

Bloodhound took the time to clean up the house while Elliott was gone.

“Isn’t he interesting, Artur?”

Bloodhound's question was met with the silent, beady-eyed stare of the raven.

 

\---

 

Bloodhound opened the door after Elliott knocked way too many times. His arms were holding numerous grocery bags, and the strain of holding all that weight made Elliott’s biceps flex.

Elliott raised his eyebrows. “You checking these bad boys out?” He raised each arm a couple of times as if he was lifting weights.

Bloodhound pretended to close the door on him.

“Hey, wait a sec…” Elliott squirmed past the door and Bloodhound towards the kitchen.

Elliott began to put groceries in the fridge and Bloodhound watched him from the doorway.

“Do you mind if I help you make the pork chops?” Bloodhound felt it would be impolite if they just waited to be served and watched Elliott do all the work.

“Of course I wouldn’t mind,” said Elliott. "But I was thinking I would play more of the sexy housemaid role while you were the dominating master of the mansion."

"Are you really trying to get kicked out of my house?" Bloodhound stood up slightly straighter and crossed their arms.

"No, no, no! I'm joking, Houndy," said Elliott. "Only joking."

 _Houndy_ , thought Bloodhound. _That's new_.

After Bloodhound and Elliott had put away all the groceries, and Bloodhound glared at Elliott after they saw him slip some beers into their fridge, the two Legends began to gather the ingredients and set them on the counter.

Bloodhound slipped off their gloves slowly and placed them to the side. They rolled up their sleeves to the elbow, seeing that making the pork chops might get a little messy.

Elliott glanced over and saw the bare skin of Bloodhound. Their darker skin was the gentle color of tree bark. Elliott noticed they also had a few scars along their hands and arms, but he guessed they were from the Games.

Elliott felt his heart begin to squeeze against his chest. This was the first time he had seen any part of Bloodhound, and they were definitely beautiful.

Elliott turned to the sink to wash his hands. "We should wash our hands before we start," he said, his voice an octave softer due to his heart being halfway up his throat.

Bloodhound stood next to Elliott and put their hands beneath the warm water while Elliott dried his hands.

He watched how they carefully rubbed along their fingers. It seemed strange to see an actual part of Bloodhound. Elliott was so used to their mask and baggy jacket and pants, that he almost thought they didn't exist under all those clothes.

Elliott held out the towel for Bloodhound to dry their hands with. He then put his hands on his hips and looked at all their cooking ingredients on the counter.

"Okie dokie, let's get started," said Elliott.

As they prepared the pork chops, Elliott felt a sense of nostalgia. With the way Bloodhound passed the floured pork chops to Elliott calmly, almost like they knew what they were doing, he was reminded of his own mother.

When Elliott was first approached by the hunter the Gods sent, he never thought they would making pork chops together in Bloodhound's own kitchen. This was one crazy bonding session, but Elliott was not afraid to admit that he loved it.

 

\---

 

"Houndy, you can go sit and I'll get the rest ready," said Elliott.

"Is 'Houndy' my new nickname or something?" Bloodhound gently placed their ungloved hand on Elliott's shoulder. "Are you sure you don't need any more help?"

"It's just a cute name for you, I won't say it anymore if you don't like it, though." Elliott was careful to not move as Bloodhound may have taken that as a hint to remove their hand. "And yeah, I'll be fine. Go sit!"

"I like the name," said Bloodhound. "It's charming."

Bloodhound left the kitchen to go sit at the table, and Elliott could feel the empty presence of their hand on his shoulder.

Elliott quickly finished up and put the pork chops onto plates. Grabbing a couple of napkins, he brought out the meals to the table where Bloodhound was sitting.

They looked peaceful as they stared at Artur, almost as if the two were having a mental conversation. Maybe Artur was some kind of shapeshifter. Bloodhound's religion seemed magical enough.

Elliott placed a plate in front of Bloodhound and then a plate opposite of them for himself. "Be careful. It's hot," he said.

"Thank you, Elliott," said Bloodhound. They held their hands together and glanced down for a moment, and then looked back to Elliott.

Elliott was already digging in. These really were the best pork chops he ever made. Maybe Bloodhound did some kind of magic voodoo to make them taste better. Or they were actually a good cook.

After a few moments, Elliott looked up towards Bloodhound and saw that they were fidgeting with something invisible on the table.

"Is it because of the mask?" Elliott smiled gently.

Bloodhound was silent for a moment. "I am really sorry, Elliott. Do you mind if I keep these to eat later?"

 _How embarrassing,_ they thought.  _Did I really think I would be able to take off my mask in front of him to eat? I should have declined the pork chops. Now I look like a rassgat_.

Elliott shook his head. "It's no problem," he said. "I understand."

Elliott quickly finished his pork chops and brought his plate to the kitchen and washed it. Bloodhound remained quiet for the remainder of the meal, other than a few apologies.

"It looks so good, Elliott," they said. "I am very sorry, it is just…"

"I don't wanna make you uncomfortable, Houndy. Don't worry."

"Thank you."

Elliott looked down bashfully. "I had a lot of fun just spending time with you. I think this has been the most fun I've had in a while. So thank you."

"I had a good time too," said Bloodhound.

"It's getting late, I oughta get going."

Bloodhound stood up to say goodbye to Elliott at the doorway. Artur flew down and landed on Elliott's shoulder.

"I think he actually likes you," said Bloodhound. "He is a very shy bird."

"I like you too, Artur." Elliott carefully petted the top of the raven's head. "Even if you're a little thief!"

Bloodhound held out their still ungloved hand towards Elliott. "I will see you soon, perhaps?"

Elliott took their hand in his and shook it, feeling their warm skin. He kept their hand in his for a half second longer, making it a bit of an awkward moment.

"For sure, just text or call if you wanna chill," said Elliott.

"Yes, I would love to 'chill' with you again." Bloodhound held their arm out for Artur to land on it.

"I'll see you later, Houndy. Goodnight!"

Bloodhound watched him walk down the sidewalk towards his home. They shut the door and held a hand to their stomach.

"I am starving, Artur. I do not think I can wait to eat anymore."

Bloodhound raised their hands to their head and slowly lifted the mask off. They placed it on the table and sat down in front of their plate, the pork chops still warm.

The food smelled irresistible, especially with the mask off.

Bloodhound ate the pork chops in huge bites. They couldn’t help it, it was one of the best meals they had eaten in a long time. They made sure to leave a little piece for Artur.

After they finished, they wiped their mouth with the napkin and sighed.

It was pretty late; Bloodhound looked at the clock and it was already a bit after 11 PM.

Bloodhound got up from the table and walked to their room. They changed out of their jacket and pants into a less bulky hoodie and sweatpants.

Laying on their bed, they looked up at the ceiling.

Bloodhound thought that it would be a lot more uncomfortable to open up to Elliott. But the strange thing was, he felt familiar. Bloodhound was more comfortable with Elliott than they had been with anyone in a very, very long time. They felt as if they had known him since, well, forever.

Grabbing the holopad from their nightstand, Bloodhound began to text Elliott.

"They were delicious. Thank you so much, Elliott."

After a few minutes, a notification sound rang out from the device.

"I'm glad you liked them :) goodnight Houndy."

Bloodhound smiled at the screen. "Goodnight," they replied.

Bloodhound had no idea what this feeling was, but it definitely felt perfect in this moment.


	3. Exactly Why I Feel This Way Towards You

Elliott was laid across his couch, a beer in hand and a bag of chips next to him. This was the norm for him on the weekend; pigging out on the couch until he passed out sometime past midnight.

He changed through the channels. Nothing good was on, except for sports, but Elliott wasn’t much of a sports guy. Sure, he was an Apex Games participant, but that was… a different kind of sport. The sports on the television were boring compared to the Games. You don't often see a killing urge within the eyes of athletes like you did in the Apex Games.

The chime of the doorbell echoed through Elliott’s house.

It was a Saturday and he had no friends other than Bloodhound, but they were sort of a private individual, so who could possibly be at the door?

Opening it, Elliott was a little shocked, but still happy nonetheless. “Houndy? What’s up?”

Bloodhound was standing at the door, beers and bottles of alcohol in hand. “Hello, Elliott.”

“Don’t act all casual!” Elliott gestured to the drinks. “What’s all this about?”

“Well, I figured…” Bloodhound paused. “It is a Saturday.”

Elliott tilted his head questioningly. “Yeah, I know it is,” he said. “Are you okay?”

Bloodhound let themself into Elliott’s house. “What do you mean, ‘am I okay?’”

“You, the recluse, just arrived uninvited to my house.” Elliott didn’t mind that they had shown up, although he wished they told him beforehand. Also, they were acting a little strange. More… friendly towards him. Especially after that night. The ‘Wooing Houndy with Pork Chops’ night, as Elliott dubbed it.

“I did text you and I even called. But you did not answer so I came over anyway.”

Oh. His holopad was probably dead or got sucked into the couch cushions under his fat ass. “Ah, oh well. It’s fine. I was planning on asking you to hang out soon anyway,” Elliott said. “Why so much alcohol?”

Bloodhound placed the drinks on Elliott’s coffee table. “You are a bartender. You must like drinking. And it’s a Saturday, is drinking not what you do on a Saturday?”

Elliott glanced to the beer can and a bag of chips on the table next to the couch. “Yeah, I guess I would.”

Bloodhound settled onto the couch and grabbed a bottle of beer for themself. Elliott watched as they pulled out a straw from their jacket pocket and popped it into the opening of the bottle. They carefully put the top of the straw under their mask.

Elliott took a double-take. “A straw? If that’s not the cutest thing…” Elliott grabbed a beer and sat next to Bloodhound.

Bloodhound could barely take another sip for they were trying to focus on what to say. “This is the only way I can drink,” they mustered out after a few moments. _Cute..._

“You surprise me constantly,” Elliott said.

It was silent between them as they watched the TV. It was a reality show about a very familiar Legend with metal legs, but neither of them were paying much attention.

“Are we just gonna drink all night?” Elliott glanced to Bloodhound and saw that they were playing on their holopad.

“Is this not what ‘chilling’ is?” Bloodhound looked up at Elliott and then back to their device. “I will order pizza. There’s no need for you to cook tonight. This is a relaxing ‘chill’ session between us.”

Elliott shrugged. “Yeah, I guess it is ‘chilling.’ But if you intend on getting wasted tonight, then just beer alone isn’t gonna work.”

Bloodhound smirked under their mask. _Elliott is so childish,_ Bloodhound thought. _But it makes it easier to get along with him._ Maybe Elliott was the kind of person they got along with best; a laid-back kind of guy who could lead all the conversations. Bloodhound could just sit back and listen while Elliott went on and on about some random topic.

Elliott got up and headed towards the kitchen. He grabbed two red party cups for them, to set the _party_ mood. The _cool kid_ kind of party. _They’ll get drunk, and their cold, hardened personality will disappear, and they’ll -_ Elliott handed one of the cups to Bloodhound - _admit their secret feelings for me! If they have any. I hope they do._ Elliott concluded that he would probably be the one to admit anything before Bloodhound did. That’s how it usually was, except no one ever felt the same way towards him.

Elliott lifted up a glass bottle into each hand. “Vodka or tequila? Ooh, fancy, my _compadre_ , do you secretly drink a lot or collect or something?” Elliott inspected the bottles.

Bloodhound reached for the vodka and poured a bit into their red cup.

“You’re so rebellious. I like it,” Elliott flirted. “You might just turn me into a bad boy.”

Bloodhound finished off their beer. “It will be fun messing around with such a precious little stickler.” It was obvious that Elliott would keep up this disgusting flirting, so if you can’t beat them, join them. Yet, the tease felt unnatural in their mouth.

Elliott almost fell over right there. His knees went weak along with his stomach, a feeling that would be embarrassing and almost inappropriate in public. He calmed himself down before anything bad happened, luckily.

Bloodhound, being as intuitive as they were, could sense that they said the right thing. It brought them a sense of some kind of pride. Elliott also wasn’t that good at hiding his blushing face.

Sitting down on the couch next to Bloodhound, he felt more stable. He chugged the last of his beer and poured himself some vodka into his cup. “Is that Octavio?”

“Octavio?” Bloodhound looked at the TV screen. The man was showing off how he kept what remained of his body strong with various exercises. “Yes, that is Octane.”

“If he’s interesting enough to get his own show, I think I should be able to get a whole movie series or something. I mean, you have met me, Houndy,” Elliott said. “I’m absolutely charming.”

Bloodhound laughed. “He was a professional at some kind of race before the Games, so that is probably why they are filming him."

“I’m a professional too. At, um...” Elliott scratched his beard. “Bartending.”

“Ah, yes, because bartending is as impressive and dangerous as exploding yourself to get some part of you across the finish line.”

“Ew, don’t describe it like that, now I’ll never get that out of my head.” Elliott took a gulp of his drink but quickly acquired a grimace onto his face. It burned as it seemed to slowly sink down his throat.

Bloodhound, on the other hand, took careful sips through their straw without wincing.

The two talked for a while, either about gossip or Bloodhound pointing out something in Elliott’s living room and taunting him about it, such as a framed picture of a movie star or the obviously fake flowers he kept on his table.

Soon, Elliott was getting more chatty, as if he wasn’t talkative enough, and slurring some of his words. Bloodhound was not nearly as lightweight, but they were starting to feel a little tipsy.

“Now, my gorgeous Houndy,” Elliott leaned closer to Bloodhound. They could smell his liquor-breath through their mask. “Want to play, uh, Uno? _Dos, tres, cuatrocincosies?_ ” Elliott was obviously not good at holding his alcohol.

Bloodhound gently placed a hand under his chin to tease him. “Are you hungry?”

Elliott leaned towards Bloodhound’s touch, almost like a dog. “Yes, I am. Extremely hungry. Some pizza would be _great_.”

Bloodhound quickly pulled away and Elliott nearly fell face-first onto the couch.

“What would you like on your pizza?” Bloodhound thumbed through the food delivery app on their holopad.

“Mmm…” Elliott went over the different tastes of pizza in his head. “How about… sausage.”

Bloodhound placed their order. “It will be about half an hour until it arrives.”

Elliott sighed and laid his head on the armrest of the couch. “I’m bored, Houndy.”

“Am I supposed to take care of you like a child?”

“You could tuck me into bed tonight and tell me a story.”

“I will not.”

Elliott pouted his lips and poured more liquor into his cup. “I’ll have some more, then… since no one is here to stop me.”

Bloodhound poured some for themself as well. “Aren’t you the one who said I was a bad influence?”

“Dang, you’re right,” Elliott said. He took a sip. “I don’t think I mind that at all, though.”

Bloodhound was really starting to feel the effects now. They leaned their head back against the backrest of the couch.

“Houndy, did I ever tell you?” Elliott smiled at something inside of his cup. “I saw your hands and arms.”

“I did take off my gloves. What did you expect, my hands were invisible?” Bloodhound said sarcastically.

Elliott waited a few moments before responding. “No, I thought they were beautiful.” 

Bloodhound stayed silent.

“Can you take off your gloves again,” said Elliott. “I want to see you.”

Bloodhound placed their cup on the coffee table. They slowly raised their hands together. _I want to see you._ No one ever wanted to see Bloodhound. No one asked back then, nor wanted to, and no one asked now, until Elliott. They were glad that they had their mask on to hide the anxious sweat forming on their forehead.

They hesitated for a moment, then they slid their gloves off their hands delicately. Bloodhound placed the gloves in their pocket and held their hands out to Elliott.

Elliott sat up. He was almost scared to touch them. He could tell Bloodhound didn’t do this for just anyone. Tenderly, he ran his finger along their palm. _Soft._ He then began to rub along Bloodhound’s hands, giving special care over the scars. He wanted to hold them, craved for them to open up to him. He wanted to know the real Bloodhound.  Elliott’s own palms were getting somewhat clammy. 

“What are you doing?” Bloodhound’s voice came out in almost a whisper.

Elliott stopped for a moment. “Like, a hand massage.”

“It feels nice.”

Elliott continued to gently move his hands across their’s. “Hey, Bloodhound,” Elliott said.

“Yes, Elliott?” Bloodhound watched how Elliott looked so peaceful and content. And a bit dorky, but that was usually the expression on his face.

“I really think I’m-” The doorbell rang before Elliott could finish.

Bloodhound pulled their hands back quickly and got up to answer the door.

“Yes, thank you. Keep the change.” Elliott heard Bloodhound talking to the pizza delivery person at the doorway. Listening to their accent while they spoke would never get old. Everything they said almost sounded lyrical, like an old song.

Elliott’s stomach made an embarrassing grumble as he caught a whiff of the pizza. Bloodhound chuckled and set the pizza boxes on the wooden coffee table, then went to grab a couple of plates from the kitchen.

Elliott scratched his beard anxiously, waiting for Bloodhound to return and possibly comment on what he was trying to say.

Bloodhound put a slice of pizza onto their plate and handed Elliott’s plate to him. Elliott was so distracted on shoveling piece after piece into his hungry mouth that at first he didn’t notice Bloodhound turning away and slightly lifting up their mask to eat the pizza.

“Wait, did you just eat some of your pizza?” Elliott took a large bite out of his slice. “I think that they should’ve made, like, a little mail slot in your mask so you could eat and drink. Or maybe the front part by your mouth could come off. I mean, the scary Legend using a straw is cute, but it would make everything easier for you.”

“That would look a bit funny, would it not?” Bloodhound wiped their hands on a paper towel.

“But then you could eat without having to turn away and stuff. It would be easier.”

“Well, let me know when you find a mask that does that.”

Elliott made a mental note that he would probably forget within the hour.

The two of them ate their pizzas and talked about inventions they could make, and the giant mansion they would buy with their millions of dollars from their imagined creations.

“We could get a Golden Retriever… or a wiener dog. Do you like dogs? Your name is ‘Bloodhound,’ you must like dogs,” Elliott began to think about how bloodhounds looked. Droopy face, droopy eyes. Is that why they were named “Bloodhound"? _Wait, no, it’s because they’re good at hunting and tracking, like a bloodhound. Duh._

“I have never had a dog,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott widened his eyes. “Oh yeah, you’ve got that bird. You didn’t bring him, I miss him a little bit.”

Bloodhound smiled. “I figured you would not want Artur flying around your house, and he was a bit sleepy when I left so I let him rest.”

“Cute, probably resting on that little pillow I saw in his nest.”

“Maybe you should have some water, Elliott.” Bloodhound noticed that Elliott was pouring his third cup of hard liquor. They didn’t want him to end up with a horrible hangover.

Elliott took a gulp from his red cup. “Should I?”

Bloodhound got a glass of water from the kitchen for Elliott. “Sit up when you drink.”

“You sound like my mom,” Elliott sipped at the water.

“Then she is a wise lady,” said Bloodhound.

After finishing the water, Elliott wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, despite there being napkins on the table a few feet away. “Let’s watch a scary movie.”

“There’s no such thing as ‘scary’ movies.” Bloodhound raised their arms and stretched. They were feeling a bit sleepy.

“What do you mean? Are you telling me you’ve never at least gotten goosebumps from watching a scary movie?”

“It is foolish to be scared when you know something is going to end up happening,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott sighed. “I guess, when you put it like that…”

“We can still watch one if you’d like.” Bloodhound could use this time to think, or maybe take a quick, much needed nap.

Elliott got up to put a movie on. He keeled over as soon as he stood up and Bloodhound had to steady him.

“Ghosts, demons, monsters, killers. All spooky.” Elliott picked out a movie that had some kind of creepy, large eye on the front. He put it in the DVD player and the movie began. Elliott turned off the lights in the room and sat on the couch next to Bloodhound.

“This one is super scary. Like, even you’ll probably be peri-... petar-... pretified.” He stopped after his third attempt at the word.

“Petrified,” Bloodhound said.

“Yes, you will be that.” Elliott grinned dorkily.

The movie began, and Bloodhound closed their eyes. They were feeling sleepy after the alcohol, and the social interaction was a bit tiring too. They heard Elliott yawn loudly and then felt his arm be laid across their shoulders.

“That is extremely cheesy,” said Bloodhound, keeping their eyes closed.

Elliott’s arm remained over Bloodhound’s shoulders. “What else am I supposed to do?”

“If you’re going to flirt with me at least be creative about it.”

“I’m not flirting! I mean, I am, but…” Elliott’s words drifted off to silence.

Soon, Elliott was asleep next to Bloodhound, his arm still around them. Bloodhound didn’t mind it. In fact, it felt nice. They weren’t used to this much attention or affection. Their heart beating loudly in their ears and the layer of sweat covering their palms was the only thing bothering them at the moment.

 

 

Bloodhound woke with a start when they felt Elliott beginning to lean over them.

“Did I fall asleep?” Bloodhound yawned.

“I did too,” Elliott replied after a moment. 

 _I must have woken him,_ thought Bloodhound, feeling a little bad. Pulling their holopad out of their pocket, Bloodhound checked the time. “It’s already past midnight.”

“How about you spend the night?” Elliott’s words weren’t slurring as much as before.

Spend the night? Bloodhound pondered the idea for a moment. They were too tired to walk back home, or call a cab to come pick them up. “Fine.”

“Yay…” His cheer didn’t sound very enthusiastic, for he was already falling back asleep.

“Elliott…?” Bloodhound played with Elliot’s hand.

Letting out another yawn, Elliott responded. “What’s up, Houndy?”

“What were you going to say earlier when you… were touching my hands, and the doorbell rang?” They had an idea, with their perceptive skills, but they wanted to hear the truth from his own mouth.

Elliott thought back to a few hours ago. Massaging their hand, how warm they felt… Elliott smiled for a moment, then turned his gaze away. The room felt like it was closing in; the air seemed like it was getting warmer.

“I was trying to tell you, um,” said Elliott.

Bloodhound patiently waited. Elliott felt his heart leap in his chest just from glancing in their direction. “You’re a great person, and...” He tried to stall a bit.

“You do not have to force yourself to say i-”

“I wanna say it because I really mean it. I honestly am, like, ugh." Elliott rubbed his forehead. "I think I love you, Bloodhound.”

Bloodhound sighed and thought about how to respond. How exactly did you respond to a love confession? Bloodhound for sure didn’t know. Maybe he was just super drunk. Too drunk to realize exactly what he was saying.

They waited before speaking again, searching for the right words.

“That is great,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott looked a bit dejected. “Only great?”

“No, no, that is not what I meant.” Bloodhound grabbed Elliott’s hands in theirs. “I mean, it is great. It is amazing. I do not know how to correctly respond.”

“Just, um, say it back or… reject me or something. I wouldn’t mind if you did,” said Elliott. “My ego would be hurt a little bit, but I’d probably get over you. Eventually.”

Bloodhound didn’t know how to move this conversation in the right direction. “No, Elliott… I really do like you. I was afraid to admit it, but I think I love you too.” It was beginning to get stuffy under their mask.

Elliott had a wide smile on his face. “Do you really mean it? Like, you’re not just humoring me, are you?”

“I would never do something that heartless,” said Bloodhound. “I do not know why, but when I met you… I felt instantly connected to you. I am not sure if it is because of the Gods or something else, but I want to be with you. You… attract me. You are interesting, I want to learn more about you. You fascinate me.”

Sweat began to form in different places on Elliott, definitely due to anxiousness. “I felt the same way and I didn’t wanna seem weird so I didn’t tell you until now but I’m gonna be honest if I didn’t get totally drunk I wouldn’t have told you because I was scared that you wouldn’t wanna even be friends with me and you would leave me or something.”

Bloodhound noticed Elliott tended to ramble when he was feeling strong emotions. Yet another charming character trait that Bloodhound was inevitably intrigued by. 

“But yeah, I love you,” Elliott said once again when Bloodhound didn’t speak.

Bloodhound steadily placed their hands on his warm cheeks. Elliott placed his hands on top of their’s. _Toasty._ Elliott couldn’t hold back his yawn.

“Do you want to sleep?” Bloodhound felt a contagious yawn coming along too.

Elliott shook his head. “Can I kiss you?”

“Repeat that, please.”

“I said…” Was Bloodhound just teasing him?

No, Bloodhound was lost in their own world. The overpowering feelings coming from their chest and mind made them feel like they would fall over if they weren’t touching something physical, which happened to be Elliott’s face.

“I want to kiss you,” Elliott said quietly.

Bloodhound thought for a moment. _Kiss_? They did not know much, especially in terms of affection, but they knew what a kiss was. _A kiss…_ The thought of having Elliott’s full, soft lips against their own made their limbs weak. They had not kissed anyone in a very long time. In fact, they hadn’t experienced this much touching and emotion with anyone since long ago.

“Close your eyes. Do not look.” Bloodhound swallowed the anxious lump forming in their throat. What could they lose?

“I promise I won’t.” Elliott closed his eyes gently and felt Bloodhound remove their hands from his face. He heard rustling from what he assumed was them taking off their mask. Bloodhound then placed their hands back on Elliott’s face.

Elliott felt a chill go up his back. A pleasant chill. He held his breath as he felt a presence get closer in front of his face. Tiny breaths touched his lips, and then the feeling of Bloodhound’s light kiss.

Bloodhound did not know what to do once the two of them connected lips.

Elliott brought his arms up to rest on Bloodhound’s shoulders. His hands brushed through their long hair.

It made a deep, concealed feeling emerge within Bloodhound. They wanted to weep, to be as close to Elliott as they possibly could get, to cut off all contact with him, to embrace the fact that they were in love. They wanted to accept that they were obsessed with Elliott more than anything.

The kiss lasted an awkward moment longer than Bloodhound thought it would, and they both pulled away steadily. Bloodhound quickly pulled the mask over their head.

“You can open your eyes,” Bloodhound said.

Elliott rubbed his eyes and opened them. The face that he had just kissed was now concealed once again under the mask.

Bloodhound felt… warm. Their heart pulled against their chest, begging to stay in this moment forever. They held their head down, unable to look at Elliott. 

“You are a lot cuter when I looked at you with my mask off.” Bloodhound placed their hands on Elliott’s arms. Was that good flirting?

Elliott leaned closer to Bloodhound. They could not keep their hands off each other.

“Did I do it wrong?” Bloodhound’s voice was a lot quieter now. “You are not responding… I must have done something wrong.”

“No, Houndy… It was amazing.” Elliott was still somewhat breathless.

Bloodhound stayed quiet. There was tension in the air for more, for anything at all, but the two of them remained silent.

“My real name is Bloth Hoondr.”

Elliott stared into the eyes of Bloodhound’s mask. “Bloth…”

It was quiet between them once again.

“That name was given to me a long time ago,” said Bloodhound.

“It’s pretty.” Elliott ran a finger along their mask. His eyes were half-lidded, and Bloodhound felt bad for keeping him awake.

“Go to sleep, Elliott.” Bloodhound leaned back on the couch and closed their eyes. “I do not want you to have a bad headache in the morning. You need to sleep off all that alcohol.”

Elliott gently pecked the side of Bloodhound’s mask and laid his head down on their lap. “Goodnight, Bloth,” Elliott mumbled. He was asleep within moments.

Bloodhound carefully ran a hand through his dark, curly hair. “Goodnight, my beloved,” they whispered.


	4. That You Are so Easy to Tease

The rising sun began to light up the sky, and Bloodhound was already up long before. They had woken up around four in the morning, being careful that they did not awaken Elliott as they carried him to his room. He must’ve been very tired from the night before, for when they picked him up to move him to his bed, he stayed fast asleep.

Bloodhound looked around Elliott’s house for a pen and something to write on. Once they found a notepad, they began to write.

“ _Thank you for letting me spend the night, my dearest Elliott._ ”

Bloodhound figured that was enough to write down and set the note on the coffee table. They wanted to get home as soon as possible; they needed some time alone and their mask was beginning to uncomfortably chafe against their head and face.

Before they left, they picked up a bit around the house. They put the remainder of the drinks in the fridge along with the pizza and threw out any garbage. If they were being honest, the house looked a lot tidier now than when they had arrived the night before.

Quietly, they shut the front door behind them and began to walk back to their own house. Not many people were out at this hour, only a runner or two and a woman walking her dog. It was peaceful, and one of Bloodhound’s favorite times to spend outside.

This planet was naturally hot, but early in the morning and late at night it got cooler out. The breeze was chilly, but Bloodhound was perfectly content in their bulky jacket and pants. It was a pain to be in a hot, stuffy outfit some days, especially during Games when they had to move around a lot, but something kept them from changing their choice of attire.

Soon, they arrived at their house. Opening the front door, Artur was sitting on a perch within the entrance.

“Hello, my _f_ _élagi_.” Bloodhound reached an arm up for Artur to land on it. He responded with a quiet chirp.

“I apologize for not coming home last night,” said Bloth Hoondr. “I was with Elliott.” They removed their mask and took in a deep breath of fresh air.

Artur hopped across their arm to get closer to their face. He leaned into the crook of their neck and nuzzled them.

Bloth let out a small laugh and walked to their room. After placing their mask on their nightstand, they changed into a more comfortable t-shirt and pants. Softly running their hand down their arms, they let out a sigh.

“Artur, I had such a nice time, although I will admit that socializing that much gets tiring.” Bloth looked towards Artur, who was perched on the headboard of their bed.

The raven seemed to nod as if he was listening.

Sitting down on the bed, Bloth looked at their hands closely. Every nerve in their hands seemed to be alive as Elliott tenderly held them. But now, they felt normal. Boring, scarred, and shameful.

They put their hands behind their back. “I cannot hurt him like this,” Bloth mumbled. They felt Artur hop onto the bed towards their hands.

“It is all so strange. I do not know how to react to him, what is right and what is wrong to do in situations concerning… endearment. I just…” They closed their eyes for a moment. “He is so compelling, I want to be around him constantly.” Bloth gently petted the back of the bird’s head.

They felt a smile forming on their face. “The way he is so carefree, the way he views the world, how he is so charming with his silly little comments. It is all so pleasant.”

All these feelings were new to Bloth. No one, in a very long time, had captivated them as Elliott had. Their purpose in life was to play in the Apex Games. They never considered that they would have any relationships. There was no point in them.

But the Gods were the ones who caused their encounter, so there had to be a reason that Bloth was feeling this way. Perhaps, life wasn’t just one singular path. Maybe having a partner in life could make it more enjoyable, and they didn’t have to only be focused on hunting and constantly trying to win.

Bloth laid back on the bed, and Artur jumped up to rest on their stomach. “I have absolutely no idea how to treat him right.”

Was it like taking care of a bird? Did they have to coddle him and make sure he was fed and well-rested? No, they had to give Elliott more credit than that. He wasn’t that much of a helpless child, though he acted like it sometimes.

An urge in Bloth made them want to protect Elliot, provide for him and make sure he was happy, because - goddamnit - his smile made their stomach feel like it was holding a garden of butterflies. Yet another gushy feeling they would have to get used to if they were really serious about “dating” him.

Elliott seemed like he needed so much love and attention, which Bloth was not an expert in either. They hoped that their coldness wouldn’t drive away the lovable, confident Elliott. It hadn't yet, but... regretfully, they felt an urge to block his number and never come in contact with him again. It would make everything much easier.

They got up from the bed and headed towards their desk across the room, where their computer was located. Bloth seldom used it, just to check on important news. There was no other need for a computer, but it was given as a complimentary gift from Apex for becoming a Legend and Bloth accepted it hesitantly.

They sat in the seat and turned it on. Artur situated himself on a perch above the monitor.

“I wish you could talk, Artur.” Bloth waited for the screen to light up. “Do you think I take good enough care of you?”

Artur began to clean his feathers.

“Well, you are certainly spoiled. I do not know of any other ravens that have special little areas within a home just for them to rest and play.”

“ _Caw,_ ” said their companion.

The computer booted up, and Bloth opened up the web search. Their fingers hovered over the keys. “How to… how to…” They didn’t know the right term to look up. Do normal people often look up this kind of stuff?

“How to show your lover your attraction,” Bloth said aloud as they typed into the search bar. They quickly closed the tab when a few images of scantily-dressed women appeared. Bloth bashfully kept their eyes to the ground. “Not that kind of attraction,” they mumbled.

Their holopad began to vibrate in their pocket, and they took it out to see that Elliot was calling them.

“Hey, Houndy,” Elliott yawned on the other side of the holopad.

Bloth checked the clock on their wall. Nearly noon. “Did you just wake up?”

“Yes, I did. But I saw that my ‘dearest’ Bloth had disappeared into thin air, leaving a meager love letter for me.”

“Artur was home alone, I did not want him to be scared.”

“You could have at least woken me up.”

“You just looked very peaceful and sweet, so I decided against waking you and instead moved you to your bed.”

Elliot let out a small laugh. “So you mean we didn’t end up sleeping together on my bed?”

“Of course we slept together, but on the couch.” Bloth spun their chair around so they could look out the window.

There was a pause on Elliott’s side of the holopad. “We slept together?”

“Yes, do you not remember? We fell asleep on the couch.”

“Oh, _that_ kind of sleeping together,” said Elliott.

Bloth watched as a woman walked past outside their house. “Is there different ways to sleep together?”

Elliott tsked. “You’re seriously outdated.”

“You are not going to tell me what it means?” Bloth patted their lap to invite Artur to sit on it.

“It’s pretty cute how clueless you seem, so I won’t,” said Elliott.

Bloth sighed. “You are teasing me. I will end the call if that is the only reason you called me.” Of course, they knew what ‘sleeping together’ was, but they wanted to pester Elliott for a moment.

“No, no, no, Houndy,” said Elliott. “Stay with me. Let’s talk.”

Bloth smiled. “What would you like to talk about, darling?”

Elliott picked up the holopad and walked into the kitchen. “‘Darling?’ I like the sound of that. But I don’t have anything in mind, I only wanted to hear your attractive accent,” he said. Opening the fridge, he sighed at all the alcohol remaining. “I can’t drink all this, you’ll probably have to come over and finish it with me. And spend the night again.”

“I do not know, why not throw a party with your friends?”

“What friends?”

Bloth shrugged. “You are very talkative and lovely, so I would assume a lot of people would be attracted to you.” Their stomach seemed to twist up at the thought that there were other people spending time with Elliott, but they didn't know why.

Elliott laid back on the couch in the living room and put his legs up over the armrest. “Exactly the opposite, actually. I seem to deter people.”

“Then why am I so tempted by you?”

Elliott closed his eyes and took a moment to refocus. Oh, how hard that flirt hit him. “I, er, I don’t know. But I’m glad you are.”

A comfortable silence grew between them.

“Be my partner for the Game on Tuesday,” Bloth said.

Elliott had forgotten about the Apex Game coming up. He had not attended one in a while. That was normal for a rookie, taking a few days off. Or, more like two weeks for Elliott, but he was sensitive and getting used to everything. No one could blame him.

“Of course I will be. I’d be your life partner, too,” he said, making any attempt to slip in a flirt. “Are you going to do everything for me like last time?”

Bloth pursed their lips at Elliott’s self-deprecating remark. “You eliminated Lifeline, do not forget. That was the winning kill,” they said. “I assure you, the Gods will be on your side the next Game.”

Even though he wasn’t a believer in any sort of higher power, it was nice to imagine that something, or someone, was watching over him. It was also heartwarming to hear Bloth go on about the Gods, how they got somewhat excited about them and couldn’t hide it.

An angry bird yelled into the phone on Bloth’s end of the call.

“I am sorry, I have got to go. Artur is getting cranky and I have to do some shopping,” Bloth said.

“I, um, Bloth,” Elliot began.

“Yes?”

Elliott shyly twiddled his fingers. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“All right. Goodbye, Elliott.” They ended the call.

Elliott quickly opened the chat between them. “I love you,” he simply wrote.

A few minutes later Bloth responded, “I love you, too.”

Elliott sighed. He didn’t know if they would be so open to the “L” word. He thought maybe they had been drunk last night and complied with Elliott’s little affections out of pity. Waking up to their note this morning was a relief, with the special little term of endearment before his name and their warmth during the call.

His heart ached thinking about them. Gosh, he was obsessed with them. He probably wouldn’t see them until the Game in a couple of days, but at least they could talk using the holopads.

“Honestly, Artur, you are so needy.” Bloth put on their hoodie and sweatpants, their usual attire for when they were just going to run a few errands. Slipping on their mask, they immediately wished they could leave their house without the mask. It was going to be a hot day. Their reason for having a mask wasn’t anything like that dastardly “Caustic,” who used his mask so he could survive his own inhumane attacks during battle (and maybe outside the arena), but because they felt safe in it. The cruel, nosy world wouldn’t be able to see them under their protective mask.

 

 

Bloodhound arrived at the pet store, Artur in tow on their shoulder. The clerk glanced at them, then went back to reading a gossip magazine. They caught a glimpse of Elliott’s rugged, attractive face on the cover; he probably did an interview with the magazine company.

They walked straight to the back of the store, where the food for snakes and such was kept. As Bloodhound looked over their selection of rats and mice for Artur, they felt a tap on their shoulder.

“Excuse me, Bloodhound?” A feminine voice spoke.

Bloodhound turned and looked down at her. She definitely appeared young enough to still be in school. In her hand was a voice recorder and a pencil was stuck behind her ear.

“Hi, I’m Angela Seyton, a journalist at my school. Can I ask you a few questions?” Her blue eyes were wide, with her head turned up to look at the taller Legend.

Bloodhound did not usually comply with the media. They were money-seeking dramatics who would publish anything, even if it was obviously untrue. But she was just a little girl, probably writing for the school newspaper, so what harm could she do?

“Of course,” said Bloodhound.

Angela gasped, then quickly acquired her professional persona. “Thank you! my friends - I mean, the school - loves the Apex Games.” She fiddled with the voice recorder, then lifted it so it was closer to Bloodhound’s mask.

She pulled a notepad out of her purse and flipped open to a page full of scribbly writing. Bloodhound caught a few of the Legends’ names on there, including themself, with a list of questions under them. She seemed prepared for this fateful day.

“Okay, Bloodhound, first question. How do you seem to always win your Games? I mean, it’s incredible how good you are at them.”

Bloodhound couldn’t help but smile at her bubbly personality. “The Gods help me through them all. They have given me the strength to be victorious.”

“Interesting. Next question. Doesn’t it get hot under all of your gear?”

“Unbelievably so.”

“Why don’t you take it off then?”

“I have my own reasons,” said Bloodhound.

Angela nodded. “Understandable. Um, third question.” She read through the questions she had on her page. “I don’t wanna keep you any longer…”

Artur seemed to glare at the young reporter as he rested on Bloodhound’s shoulder. He wanted to get home so he could eat the delicious mice that Bloodhound had gone out to buy.

“Okay, Bloodhound,” she said as she put her notepad back in her purse. “A lot of people have been seeing you with that new Legend, Mirage. What’s up between you?”

Bloodhound was silent for a moment. “I am just supporting him while he gets used to the Games.”

“But you’re known for being a loner and going solo, and you’ve never done this for any of the other Legends, so why him?”

Rolling their eyes, Bloodhound waved her recorder away. “I have got things to attend to. I apologize.”

Angela turned off the voice recorder and looked a bit sad. “Um, okay. Thanks anyway. Good luck on Tuesday.”

Bloodhound nodded and turned towards the mice. They heard her small footsteps walk away. “Why does it matter so much?" They muttered.

Yes, usually they were more open with discussing their believes and drive with people, but now Elliott was involved with it all. They didn't even understand why the Gods wanted them to end up together, and it made them a little irritated. They did not like to be so clueless about things.


	5. That I'm Not That Bad at the Apex Games

_Ring, ring!_

“Ma, stop calling, I wanna sleep.”

The holopad’s ringtone stopped eventually, and Elliott sighed contently. Now that he was an adult, and living alone, no one could wake him up before he wanted to. It was a dream come true. He fell back into the comfortable bliss of half-asleep when he heard tapping on his bedroom window.

“God, really? What is wrong with you news people, finding out where I live and bugging me. I mean, sure, I love the spotlight, but it’s too fucking ear-” Elliott turned over in his bed towards the partially-opened window and saw something that would terrify anybody else, but he grinned happily.

“Bloth? Why are you here?” Elliott rubbed his eyes and stretched.

Bloodhound scoffed. “Elliott, it is Tuesday. We have a Game in two hours, why are you not awake?”

 _A Game?_ Elliott scratched his head. “Oh, you’re right. But why are you at my window?”

“You did not answer the door or your holopad.”

“Maybe you should come slip into bed with me and ditch the game…”

“You are kidding, right? Get up.” Bloodhound strode away from the window.

Elliott quickly jumped up from his bed and put on a t-shirt and jeans and grabbed his Apex suit from the closet. _Scary… try not to ever piss them off again, Elliott. Dumbass._ He swiftly finished getting ready and ran out the front door to see Bloodhound standing next to a cab, waiting with a paper bag in hand.

“No Artur?” Elliot looked above him for the raven, who usually flew in from nowhere and messed up his hair.

“They make me send him to the Game early,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott made a pouty face and slipped into the backseat of the car, with Bloodhound behind him.

“I didn’t know what day it was, I’m really sorry, Hou-”

Bloodhound handed the bag to Elliott with no comment and turned to look out the window.

Elliott opened the bag and quietly moaned. He didn’t realize how hungry he was.

“I hope it is the right kind,” said Bloodhound.

Smiling, Elliot took a giant bite out of the donut and the cream threatened to ooze out of the dough and land on his shirt. “Thank you, babe.”

Bloodhound ignored him, and Elliott pretended as if that action didn’t make his heart ache.

 

 

They reached Apex HQ, and Bloodhound left the cab quickly and walked ahead of Elliott.

“Bloodhound, why’re you so mad?” Elliott tried to catch up but they were still out of reach.

They turned to Elliott once they got inside the building. “I am not anymore, but you need to cut out the…” they gestured their hands to the audience around them.

“Oh. Oh! I get it.” Elliott realized that the paparazzi were carefully watching the Legends for any news scoops they could get, especially Elliott and Bloodhound since they had their little rumor going around.

Bloodhound felt a bit guilty acting like this towards their sweet Elliott, but it had to be done. “Go get changed,” they whispered. “I’ll be waiting for you in the Drop Ship.”

Elliott nodded. “Yeah, whatever, _dork,_ ” he muttered.

Bloodhound warmly chuckled at their boyfriend’s overly dramatic attempt to be rude and walked over to where the Legends had begun to meet up.

  
  


Walking out of the dressing room, Elliott looked around for Bloodhound. It seemed that all the Legends were gathered in front of a big digital board, so he walked towards there. He soon located Bloodhound and stood next to them.

“Hey, _nerd,_ what’s up?” Elliott furrowed his brows to have more of a tough, annoyed appearance.

Bloodhound shrugged. “Since we did not have a third person, someone offered to fill the spot. Her name is Bangalore.”

Elliott looked around. “Where is she?”

“Somewhere,” Bloodhound simply replied.

“ _All Apex Legends, please report to the Drop Ship, and remain with your squads. We will be leaving shortly,_ ” a voice boomed from the loudspeakers.

“Mirage, Bloodhound, over here!” Photographers took photo after photo as the Legends strolled into the ship. Bloodhound ignored them, but Elliott stuck out his tongue in their direction.

“Do not encourage them,” said Bloodhound. “They are already curious about how I am in a full squad for the first time.”

A woman ran up to the two of them. “Hey, sorry, just talking to someone. I know who you are, Bloodhound, but who’s this?” She eyed Elliott and stuck her hand out to shake his.

Elliott grabbed her hand and was surprised by her strength. “I’m Mirage, or you could call me Elliott too.”

She nodded. “Nice to meet you. I’m Bangalore, but you can call me Anita. Good luck to both of us.”

Elliott grinned. “Thanks.”

“So you’ve taken him under your wing,” Bangalore said to Bloodhound. “That’s unlike you.”

Bloodhound took a seat and waited for the ship to take off. “I felt pity for him.”

“Yeah, I saw in the playback of the last game,” Anita sat down beside Bloodhound. “You must really enjoy his company if you’ve kept him around this long.”

“Anita, I could say the same about you.” Bloodhound tapped their fingers impatiently on the bench.

Elliott watched them playfully bicker. _They must be acquaintances_ , thought Elliott.

The Drop Ship took off, and a giant digital clock was projected onto the wall. _3 minutes 54 seconds until arrival,_ it read.

“How do you like the Games so far, Elliott?” Anita asked.

He glanced at Bloodhound and then back to Bangalore. “It’s okay. This is only my second one though, so I’m still kinda worried.”

“I understand,” said Anita. “It gets better soon, don’t sweat it.”

Elliott simply nodded in response.

“ _Now arriving in King’s Canyon._ ” The voice echoed through the cockpit of the ship.

“King’s Canyon? This place is new.” Elliott looked towards Bloodhound for an answer, but they remained silent. Last game was located on an entirely separate planet, he realized.

Bloodhound stood up from the bench. “All right, Elliott, be careful. Stick close.”

Elliott nodded and the squad walked towards the exit. Dropping was one of the scariest parts during the last game for him. Jumping out of a speeding ship hundreds of feet above the ground? Utterly terrifying.

“Let’s land in Bridges,” said Bangalore.

When they were right above Bridges, Bloodhound suddenly grabbed Elliott’s hand and jumped. Elliott kept his eyes closed until he could feel the solid ground underneath him. “That wasn’t that bad,” said Elliott.

“It is only because I was holding you.” Bloodhound quickly let go of his hand and ran towards a house. “Be cautious, another squad landed nearby,” they said over their shoulder.

Elliott watched as Anita was already looting a house nearby. He grabbed onto a zip line and traveled up to the wooden structure overhanging the cliff. He sneakily ran to the bottom floor, making sure to send a decoy up the stairs in case another person was here.

A signal beeped in his ear, alerting him that someone had shot his decoy.

Swiftly, Elliott grabbed an R-99 and a level one shield. There wasn’t much else down there, except for an arc star and a shield battery. Slowly, he peeked over the short wall to see if the Legend had finished looting.

He heard footsteps run down the stairs. Elliott sent a decoy running past the stairs, and he saw where the gunshots originated from.

Aiming down sights, Elliott waited for them to come down the stairs. As soon as the Legend came into view, he began shooting. The other person had level two armor, but Elliott had the element of surprise and soon their shields were gone.

The Legend turned to face him, and he saw it was a woman, one of the lesser-known Legends, he supposed, for he didn’t recognize her.

She pulled out a pistol and fired in his direction, and the bullets wore down his shields. Elliot sent a decoy to his right to sidetrack her and returned fire at the woman. The fight was soon over, and she was knocked down. Elliott walked up to her and shot her until her deathbox appeared so that she couldn’t ping to her teammates where he ran to.

“Nice job,” Anita’s voice buzzed into his earpiece.

Elliott grinned to himself and began to loot his victim’s inventory. A Wingman, some light and heavy ammo, a level two shield, and a couple of syringes. He took everything and jumped down to where Bloodhound was looting.

As he entered the house, Bloodhound turned to him, with Artur on their shoulder. “See, the Gods are aiding you.”

“It’s exhiber- exhila- fun. It’s fun to actually get a kill.” Elliott looked out the window of the house.

Bloodhound began to walk up the stairs. “The other squad ran as soon as you killed their teammate.”

Elliott kept a smug smile on his face. He felt good. _Really_ good.

Bloodhound took out a sniper weapon and aimed out of the window. “There’s another sniper over in that direction,” they muttered, mostly talking to themself.

They shot their gun a few times, and the enemy returned fire. Their shield was depleted and Elliott dropped his shield battery for Bloodhound. They mumbled a ‘thank you’ for they were focusing on knocking down the enemy.

“Oh, Mozambique here.” Elliott pinged the gun for Bloodhound.

Bloodhound groaned. “Elliott, I saw the Mozambique already. You do not have to ping it, _especially_ when I am in the middle of a battle. And, for future reference, never use Mozambiques.”

Elliott frowned. “Just making sure you noticed it…”

The kill feed showed that Bloodhound had knocked down the Legend after they fired one last bullet.

“Let us regroup with Bangalore and head to Bunker, towards the person I knocked down. The storm will arrive soon.” Bloodhound ran back down the stairs and left the house. Elliott followed them and the squad regrouped.

Bloodhound naturally took the lead with their tracking skills. “It seems the other squad went this way, too,” they said.

Their squad kept high alert as they approached Bunker. All the bins were looted already, and the giant door to the Bunker was open.

Bloodhound used their mysterious ability and held a finger up to their mask to show Bangalore and Elliott to keep quiet. The group slowly went in and could hear the footsteps of another squad walking around inside.

Elliott sent a decoy down the hallway, and the signal rang in his earpiece. Bloodhound nodded to him and ran around the corner and shot into a room. They quickly knocked down the enemy and pinged where their teammate was running. Bangalore ran after them, but they were too fast.

“Damn,” she muttered and ran back to Elliott and Bloodhound. They looted the downed enemy and exited the Bunker.

“There’s already half the squads left,” said Elliott, a bit relieved that the Game would soon be over.

Bloodhound looked at the map. “We should head to The Pit next.”

  
  


Soon, only four squads remained, and everyone in Elliott’s squad was all fully stocked with supplies. Bloodhound had acquired level four armor and a few more kills, Elliott had a Devotion with the handy Turbocharger hop-up, and Anita carried with her a Spitfire, a level three shield, and had gotten a couple of kills of her own.

“Check this out, Houndy.” Elliott sent out his decoy to stand next to him and did a little jig with it. “Which one is which?”

“Elliott, please focus. You never know when an enemy could be nea-” Bloodhound quickly grabbed Elliott and pulled him to the ground as a shot was fired right where his head was a mere half-second ago.

“Aw, Houndy, protecting little old me?”

“Please pay attention to your surroundings, I am begging you.”

“That’s no fun.”

The two got up and Bloodhound motioned for Anita to run to them behind the cover of a giant rock. They looked around for the sniper, but could not find them.

Bloodhound held their arm out to stop their two squadmates from walking. “Tracks,” they whispered. Artur flew close to the ground where Bloodhound had supposedly seen clues. They slowly crept and looked around warily for the remaining squads.

Elliott jumped as a gunshot was once again fired nearby. Shots could be heard in the distance as well.

“In Runoff,” said Bangalore. “Let ‘em fight each other, then we run in while they’re low.”

Nodding, Bloodhound looked for other tracks and clues. “I think the other squads are in Slum Lakes.”

Elliott was amazed at how intuitive the veteran Legends were. They seemed to know exactly where the other squads were - and where they were heading. The gunshots ceased and Bloodhound waved for them to follow, hiding to avoid the sniper located nearby. The squad ran to Runoff and spotted the enemy squad healing on top of a building. Ducking behind a sand dune, Bloodhound took out their Longbow. Anita motioned for Elliott to follow her while she flanked and he complied.

They ran inside the building, making sure that the enemies couldn’t spot them, and ziplined up to the top floor. Quickly but stealthily, they ran to the door where the enemies were healing on the other side. Anita pinged them and Bloodhound fired a shot, which hit Pathfinder and his newly replenished shields were shredded.

The enemies foolishly ran in random directions, unable to pinpoint where Bloodhound was. Anita threw an arc star at the ground right outside the door, and one of the Legends ran right into it. They were paralyzed for a moment, but that was long enough for Bangalore and Elliott to land a few headshots and knock them down.

Bloodhound pinged where Pathfinder had run and Elliott chased after him. When Elliott opened the door to the next room, a grenade was thrown at him and his armor was almost completely damaged. He ducked down just as Pathfinder began to shoot, and sent out a decoy to distract him.

Elliott took out his Wingman and fired at the MRVN, but the robot used his grapple to dodge the bullets. Switching over to his Devotion, Elliott was about to shoot again when Pathfinder was downed by Bloodhound, who had quickly run over from their position.

“Thank you, Houndy,” Elliott sighed. Pathfinder was a formidable opponent, compared to the easy kill he got at the beginning of the game.

Bloodhound shot at Pathfinder until his death box appeared. “His teammate is running up the stairs, but they are low.”

Anita burst through the doors and threw a frag grenade down the stairwell. Another kill obtained for Bangalore. She let out a cheer, and Bloodhound hushed her.

“Two other squads left,” said Bloodhound. “Be more quiet, Anita. They will be arriving soon.” Bloodhound dropped shield cells for Elliott, and they all began to heal themselves.

“I hear people,” said Elliott.

“They’re fighting,” Bangalore peeked out the window. “A few houses away.”

Elliott felt like pacing the room due to anxiousness, but that could be a hazardous move at this point in the Game.

The Legends waited until the gunshots stopped, then ran to where they were. The kill feed displayed that one of the last squad’s teammates were killed, so there were only one or two enemies left in the Game. They decided to storm in and finish them.

Lifeline was taking out her healing drone just as they ran up the stairs. Wraith phased into another room, and Bloodhound used their Peacekeeper to knock down Lifeline swiftly, for she was already low.

“Go get Wraith, Elliott.” Bloodhound walked up to Lifeline and shot her dead, leaving Wraith as the final enemy.

Bangalore looked out the window and pinged where she saw Wraith running. “Get her before she heals!”

Elliott shakily nodded. _Why would they leave it to me,_ he grumpily thought. Sure, he had done a great job all game, but now the nerves were getting to him.

He ran out of the house and shot at Wraith as she tried to climb over a wall. He got a few shots in and saw that she had no shield. She created a portal and traveled through it.

“Behind you,” Bloodhound’s thick accent spoke through his earpiece.

Elliott rapidly turned on his heels and fired at Wraith as soon as she appeared through the portal behind him.

“ _You are the Apex Champions!_ ”

Elliott looked around wildly. “Hell yeah, I am!”

Bloodhound and Anita walked out of the house to meet Elliott. The female soldier gave him a hearty slap on the back.

“Nice job, rookie!” She grinned, and Elliott smiled back at her. He then shifted his gaze to Bloodhound. 

They nodded to him. “You did amazing, Elliott.”

The compliment from Bloodhound made him feel a lot better than the actual victory.

 

\---

 

Back at HQ, the paparazzi went crazy over Elliott and his squad; they exclaimed for pictures and autographs. Bloodhound turned down every person, but Elliott and Anita embraced the attention and gave the audience what they wanted. After they finally got away from the crowd and headed to the lounge, Elliott stuck close to Bloodhound.

“I actually got kills, Houndy! I did so good,” he said. His cheeks began to hurt from all the smiling.

Bloodhound placed a hand on his shoulder. “It was a well-deserved victory.”

A few Legends walked up to Elliott and congratulated him and Bloodhound. Elliott was extremely giddy. “How about I throw a party at my place tonight?” 

“That would be fun,” said Bloodhound.

“But how do I get the word out?”

Bloodhound looked around the room. “Give me a moment.”

They walked towards a large man and a reporter, and while the reporter asked them questions, they ignored him and began speaking to the other man.

Elliott watched as they stepped up on the podium and tapped the mic. A rapping noise echoed through the loudspeakers, and Bloodhound cleared their throat.

“There is a party at Mirage’s house tonight. Legends only, and go ask him for the address.”

Elliott met Bloodhound halfway and smirked. “You’re so helpful, sweetheart.”

Bloodhound didn’t respond, for Legends were already crowding around him. Elliott traded contact data with them all and sent them the address and time to arrive.

“This is gonna be, like, super cool,” Elliott said to Bloodhound after he finished giving his address to everyone and accepting all his congratulations for the winning kill and second victory in a row.

Bloodhound slowly nodded and the two left the HQ together, leaving to prepare for the party that night.

 

\---

 

“Did you read the future or something?” Elliott and Bloodhound walked into his house, grocery bags in hand. “Just the other day you told me to throw a party to finish all the alcohol.”

Bloodhound dismissed his wild imagination. “I only think you took my idea seriously.”

They placed the grocery bags on the dining table, and Elliott began to dig through them. He took out the bags of chips and dip and laid them out. Then, he placed the liquor they just bought onto the counter, along with the bit Bloodhound had left last time.

“They’re coming soon,” Elliott said. “What if no one shows up? I mean, that might happen. It’s fine, I guess. We could just have our own par-”

Bloodhound walked over to Elliott and carefully embraced him. “You worry too much.”

Red in the face, Elliott hugged them back. “Well, if I don’t worry, something bad might happen.”

“Nothing bad will happen, I assure you.”

They held each other for a few moments, then went back to getting the house ready.

 

 

The doorbell rang, and when Elliott opened it, Anita stood with an unfamiliar girl accompanying her.

“Hey, Mirage.” Anita let herself into the house and walked over to Bloodhound. The girl stood in the doorway and looked in curiously with her wide, blue eyes.

Elliott opened the door wider to invite her in.

She smiled and walked in. “I’m Natalie. You might know me as Wattson, but it’s nice to finally meet you. You’re all over the news.”

Elliott had heard about her, only once or twice, but she had unique skills that people were fascinated by. She was also the daughter of the man who helped develop the Games, so she was pretty special. “Hiya, Natalie. Glad to meet you too,” Elliott said.

“I’m intrigued by you and your mother’s holographic technology. Mind telling me about it?”

“Yeah, of course!” Elliott began to go on about how his abilities worked, and as he looked in Bloodhound’s direction, he saw them sneaking glances while chatting with Anita. Elliot had lent them a hoodie of his to wear since it was more comfortable than their jacket, and it warmed Elliott’s heart to see them wear it. The unusual thing was that Bloodhound didn’t often exchange eye contact, even with him, but Elliott could tell they were staring right at him. He dismissed it as Bloodhound just being helplessly attracted to his gorgeous face and continued chatting to Natalie about him and his mother’s inventions.

 

 

Soon, more people arrived and Elliott’s moderately small house was packed. Everyone greeted him with congrats for his win and appreciation for inviting them to his party. Elliott loved the attention, but it wasn’t the kind of attention he wanted. He much rather wanted to talk to Bloodhound, who he last saw an hour or so ago talking with a Legend he wasn’t familiar with. He hadn’t seen them since.

“Have you seen Houndy?” Elliott asked Anita.

She gazed around her. “Not for a while. They went off somewhere.”

Elliott pouted. “Thanks, anyway.” He decided to go to his bedroom for a moment to sit since his own couch was occupied.

When he opened the door, he saw Bloodhound looking at a photograph on his nightstand of him with his three older brothers and his mother. The picture was taken when he had just turned six, evident from the birthday cake on the table.

“You are so little,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott thought about reaching for the photo and hiding it, but he decided against it. “Yep,” he replied.

“Did your father take the picture?” Bloodhound continued to stare at the photo.

“No, actually, one of our robots did. My dad wasn’t around much when I was young, busy with fighting in the War and stuff...”

“I am sorry about that.”

“It’s not your fault.”

Bloodhound set the picture back down on the nightstand and sat on the bed. Elliott sat next to them.

“What’d you come here for?” Elliott asked.

They sighed. “Too many people. It gets to be a little uncomfortable.”

“I get what you mean,” said Elliott.

Neither of them spoke for a moment.

“Why don’t you tell me about your childhood?” Elliott scooted closer to Bloodhound on the bed.

They pursed their lips, thinking about what to say. “There is not much to tell you regarding that.”

Nodding, Elliott didn’t push them. They obviously wanted to keep that to themself, and he respected that. They had always been hesitant to talk about themself.

“What were you talking about with that girl?” Bloodhound turned to stare at Elliott.

Elliott blanked out for a moment. “Who? Oh, Natalie. She was just interested in my techy stuff.”

“And is that all?”

Elliott sensed the message Bloodhound was trying to get across. “Yep. Are you jealous?”

“I do not know what you mean by that,” said Bloodhound. “Is that what it is called?”

Softly smiling, Elliott nodded. “I think so.”

“This feeling, I wanted to stand by you and hold you while you talked to her.” Bloodhound looked at their hands in their lap. “Is that normal in a relationship?”

“Of course it is,” said Elliott.

Bloodhound did not respond.

“Bloth?” Elliott ran a hand over his beard.

“Yes, Elliott?”

“What are we?” Elliott asked.

Bloodhound tilted their head questioningly. “Um, we are people.”

“No, I mean like… dating-wise.”

Slowly nodding, Bloodhound thought about his question. “You are mine,” they replied. “And I am yours.”

“I’m glad,” said Elliott.

“I am too.” Getting up, Bloodhound shut the door and turned off the light. Then, they removed their gloves from their hands.

Elliott watched them walk back to him and hold his head in their hands. They ran a finger over the scar he had on his cheek. “I have been meaning to ask… Where did this come from?”

Closing his eyes, Elliott took in this moment. “I was roughhousing with my brother and got scratched pretty bad.” He felt a bit saddened, remembering how they both ran into the house to their mom, him crying and his brother exclaiming that Elliott had done it to himself. When they were all living together. _Living._

Bloodhound began to remove their mask. Elliott couldn’t see their face in the dark room.

“Oh, Gods, how that girl made me… _jealous._ ” They moved towards Elliott and kissed him vigorously.

Elliott was shocked by the intensity that Bloth had embraced him, and it took a moment before he could physically return the affection. His mind buzzed and his stomach was tied into knots and untied just as quick.

“If this is what happens when you get jealous...  then I hope you get jealous all the time,” Elliott mumbled against Bloth’s lips.

“Do not do that to poor little me,” whispered Bloth. “You make me feel so sensitive and weak.”

Lost in the moment, it took a second before Elliott realized the door to the bedroom was opened.

“Is this the bathr- _huy_ , nope, it isn’t.” The Legend named Octane widened his eyes after seeing Elliott Witt lying beneath a mysterious person whom he didn’t recognize without their signature mask. He shut the door briskly.

Elliott caught his breath, and reached to feel for Bloth’s face, but felt that their mask was already back on.

“Bloth…” Elliott grabbed their sleeve while they put their gloves back on.

They did not respond. Elliott frowned up at them.

“I think I am going to go,” said Bloodhound.

Elliott grabbed their sleeve tighter. “Please, stay with me.”

“Not tonight.” They walked to the door and turned on the light. “I love you, darling,” Bloodhound whispered.

Elliott kept his eyes down. “Love you too, Bloth.”

Bloodhound left the room without looking back.

 

 

Elliott’s party lasted until about three in the morning when he finally began to kick people out. Usually, at this time, he would’ve passed out, but his mind kept him awake and he laid on his bed ruefully. Had he done something wrong? Did Octavio accidentally see Bloth’s face without their mask on?

Until the sunlight shone through the windows, he pondered why Bloodhound had left him so suddenly, and trying to ease the aching feeling growing in his heart. After tiring himself out from worrying, he finally fell asleep, not bothering to check if Bloodhound had sent something to him on his holopad.


	6. How Unbelievably Gorgeous a Human Can Be

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a long wait and such a short chapter! :(  
> I'm working on the next one right now. This one was to just reveal a certain secret... and show the dynamic of their relationship.

Business was slow at the bar. That was usual on a Wednesday, but Elliott needed something to distract him; something to keep his mind off of Bloodhound.

"You look like shit," a voice quipped from across the counter.

"Gee, thanks." Elliott continued to gaze down at the glass he was drying with a towel.

The person set their glass on the counter and snapped their fingers. "Hey, another one, _amigo._ "

Grabbing the whiskey from under the counter, Elliott poured some into Octavio's glass. The rowdy Legend tilted his head back and gulped the liquor down, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I didn't mean it in a rude way. More like, uh, a supportive way," Octavio said.

"I don't need support," Elliott mumbled.

Octavio began to tap his fingers on the counter. "Mind me asking who you were getting it on with at your little party?"

Elliott set the glass down on the rack and leaned against the counter. "None of your business."

"Geez, I was just asking."

Silence grew between them as Octavio downed his third shot.

"They haven't talked to me in a week." Elliott rested his head against his hand.

"That's rough. What'd you do?"

"You walked in during our moment and now I think they hate me."

A shrug came from Octavio. "Did you call or text them?"

"Why should I be the one to figure out why they're being so susa- sesu- susce-... sensitive? I'm waiting on them to contact me first. If they really cared they would by now."

Reaching across the counter, Octavio patted Elliott on the shoulder. "You need to be the bigger person here. Maybe when I _accidentally_ walked in, they got scared, or something..." His accent laced his every word. "If _you_ really cared, then you would call them."

Frowning, Elliott stood up straight. "... I guess," he mumbled.

"You're a good _hombre._ Now, pour me another one."

 

\---

 

"Hey, this is Elliott, but I'm not here ri- well, if you're calling me I guess you know this is Elliott. Anyways, I can't answer right now. I'll probably call you back later. Maybe. Haha, I'm just joking, I'll call back eventually. But who's calling? I barely have any friends; the only person who calls me is my mom. Uh… okay. Leave a m-" His voice mail was cut off from the time limit.

Bloodhound set the holopad down on the bed in front of them without leaving a message.

It had been a week since Elliott and they had talked. He didn't attempt to call or text, and neither did they. Maybe he was done with their cold personality. Maybe he hated that he had to always be the one to show affection. Maybe he had found some other person who would give him kisses whenever he wanted.

This was unlike Bloth; they never overthought about things, especially if it was about another person. But something hurt Bloth inside when they didn't receive a call from Elliott the morning after, like usual, or that he didn't answer his phone when they called.

Laying back on the bed, Bloth closed their eyes. "I hate love," they muttered. "It is too complicated."

Artur continued to eat some fruit from his food bowl.

"There is no point to all of it. Our job is to procreate to keep our tribe strong and rejoin our families in Valhalla," they said. "So why do we make such a big deal out of 'love?' It is such… a strange feeling, but it is new to me, it is unique." They picked at a string coming off of their hoodie. "I suppose I did love my tribe. I am sure that is an entirely different feeling from what I am feeling for Elliott."

Their holopad began to vibrate, and they jumped up to grab it. 'Dearest Elliott,' the screen read. They answered right away.

"Elliott," they let out a breath they hadn't realized they were holding in.

There was the sound of his laugh on the other end. "Houndy, I was working, sorry I didn't pick up."

"It is alright, dearest." Bloth laid back on their bed again.

"You sound happy," said Elliott.

Bloth became timid. "Well, ah, I may have missed you a bit. Why did you not call or text?"

"I could ask the same about you."

Artur crawled over the bed towards Bloth and chirped into the holopad's receiver.

Elliott gasped. "Hi, Artur!"

"Come over," said Bloth suddenly.

Elliott felt a shiver go up his back. "Come over… right now?"

"Yes."

Elliott checked the time on his alarm clock. "I'll be there in twenty minutes, honeybun."

"Okay, sweet… sweet bread." Bloth winced after saying that nickname. It did sound pretty weird, but if 'honeybun' was a cute little moniker, then 'sweet bread' had to be too.

"Huh? 'Sweet bread'? That's adorable," said Elliott. "I'll see you in a bit." He hung up.

Had they been too open? Too excited? Did their request sound too forced? It seemed to be a welcome surprise for Elliott. As long as he was happy, they were happy. 

They got up to get dressed before their boyfriend arrived, and picked up around the house.

 

 

"You are squishing me," said Bloodhound.

Elliott didn't loosen his grip on them. "I missed you so damn much, even though it's only been a week. I've been so bored without you."

Bloodhound almost commented on the fact that he was the one who didn't call or text them, but they put that aside. This was a joyful moment, not a time to accuse each other.

"I wanted you to come over because… because…" Bloodhound wrapped their arms tighter around Elliott.

"The strong and fearless Bloth Hoondr is shy and hugging me longer than three seconds? Something is up."

"Nothing is up. I also missed your presence."

"So, continue. Why'd you invite me over?"

Leaning their head against his shoulder, they let out a sigh. "I trust you."

Elliott chuckled somewhat nervously. "Trust me? With what?"

Grabbing Elliott's hand, Bloodhound walked to their room with Elliott following behind. They led him to the bed and held him against the sheets by pushing down on his shoulders.

Once again, Elliott's body responded to Bloodhound's simple actions in a troublesome way. He looked away bashfully. "Woah, you trust me about that kinda stuff? I mean, I'm up for it. I don't have… I don't have any prot-"

"That is not what I want to do. Stop that." Bloodhound ran a hand across Elliott's perfect face. Then, they brought their hands up to their mask and began to lift it off slowly and cautiously.

Elliott could do nothing except stare at them with his mouth agape. "Oh my God," he whispered.

Bloth immediately frowned. "Is that a negative reaction? Elliott- I... I should not have been so careless. Maybe I should have waited for you to ask or-"

"No, of course not. I'm… you're so gorgeous," he stuttered. "You're so much more stunning than I could ever imagine, Bloth. Gosh, I'm... I didn't think you could get anymore perfect."

A rare blush appeared on Bloth's cheeks. "You are flattering me."

"And I mean every single word of it." His finger traced along the scars running across their nose and cheeks, then he gently pushed the loose strands of sleek, crimson hair behind their pierced ears. Their eyes shone earthy hues of brown as they made contact with Elliott's.

Leaning closer, Bloth kissed Elliott tenderly, and the nerves on their face seemed to flare up. Both Elliott and Bloth held each other, seeking union and compassion.

"Baby," Elliott pulled away for a moment to catch his breath, then pecked their lips. "Tell me why you wear the mask and hide that enchanting face from the world?"

They became quiet for a moment. "In my tribe," they began. "Your face and story are meant to be kept to yourself. Only people very close to you or those in your own tribe should be able to see you or know your tale." Their breath graced against Elliott's sensitive lips as they spoke. "And, of course, the scars. I do not want to frighten others."

"You consider me close?" asked Elliott.

"Of course I do, _elskan mín._ "

"What does that mean?"

"'My darling,' in my language."

Elliott held Bloth's body close to him. "I adore you," he murmured into their ear. One of his hands found its way to the back of their head, and he gingerly ran his fingers through their hair. "Tell me about your tribe."

Averting their eyes, Bloth thought about what to say. "When I was young, extremely young, my tribe used to reside in King's Canyon."

"You mean where the Games are?"

"Yes. We prayed to the Norse Gods, and excelled in hunting and tracking," they said. "One day, these people had shown up. It was shocking; no foreigners ever came to us. So when they arrived with their own weapons and demanded we left the area or else, my tribe, my family, naturally fought back."

Elliott continued to recreate the story as a mental image. "And then what happened?"

"They died," Bloth said solemnly after a beat.

"I'm sorry about that." Elliott ran a gentle hand over their cheek.

Bloth placed their hand over his. "It is not your fault. I was young when it happened, anyway."

The two of them fell into a comfortable silence. Elliott couldn't keep his eyes off his lover's face, and he opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a quick kiss from Bloth.

"Houndy," Elliott began. "I know it's only been a little bit, but I think…" he scratched his beard anxiously.

"Speak, _ást._ " Bloth nuzzled their face into the crook of Elliott's neck.

"What does that mean?"

"'Love,'" they said.

"Where is your language from?"

"My family. I do not know exactly where, or what it is called, but I have yet to find another who knows the language other than my tribe mates." Their breath against his neck, in combination with their unique and beautiful accent, made Elliott shiver pleasantly.

Bloth said, "You are avoiding the topic."

"Er," Elliott stuttered. "I think… we should move in together."

Bloth didn't speak at first, and Elliott worried that he had said something wrong.

"Alright," they said simply.

And the two of them held each other close until night fell.

 

\---

 

What happened next was the matter of discussing whose house they would move into. The decision ended up with Elliott moving into Bloth's reasonably larger house, and soon all of Elliott's belongings had found their own spot into Bloth's house.

Artur was somewhat against the new change, since Bloth's attention was now split between him and Elliott, but he soon got used to it when Elliott would bring home an occasional treat for him.

Nights were spent watching TV, eating pork chops or take out when they got bored of pork chops (since it was the only thing either of them could cook), and sometimes nonstop cuddling sessions if Bloth was in the mood.

For both of them, this was the happiest they had been in a long time.

 

 

"Hey, Mom, wanna say hi to Bloth?" Elliott glanced at the love of his life, who was sitting on the other end of the couch and reading a novel.

Bloth anxiously smiled in his direction as they heard an excited "yes!" come from the holopad Elliott was calling on. Elliott handed the device to Bloth.

"Ah, hello, Mrs. Witt," they said.

"You really do have such a beautiful accent! But please, call me Evelyn." Elliott could hear her excitement through the speaker from across the couch. "Eli talks about you all the time. I heard you and him moved in together? And watching your Games is so thrilling; you're an amazing fighter."

Elliott laughed for he could hear her every word. Bloth nodded along to the questions.

"Yes, he recently moved in with me. And thank you, I'm glad you think that," they said. " _Eli_ often talks about you, too."

Elliott made an exaggerated frown from the nickname.

"Have you had his pork chops yet? It's a family recipe but Eli tends to put his own little spin on it," said Elliott's mother.

"Oh, yes, he made them for me on one of the first nights we met."

"Yep, sounds like Elliott."

"You're teasing me," said Elliott meekly from across the couch. He moved over so that he could rest his head on Bloth's lap.

"I heard you make holographic technology? That is interesting, you will have to show me how it works sometime."

"I'd be happy to! And you'll have to explain to me how you became one of the top Legends in the Games. Maybe you could give Eli some tips?"

"I try to. He is somewhat lazy, though."

"He always has been."

Elliott reached his hands up to take the phone from Bloth, but they reacted quicker and moved the phone away from his grasp.

"I apologize, Mrs. Witt, but Elliott seems to be trying to take the phone from me. I loved talking to you," said Bloth.

"Oh, I'll just hang up then. I've taken up your time long enough. I hope you can come over for dinner soon! Buh-bye." _Click._

Elliott looked somewhat defeated. "I think she likes you more than me."

Cupping Elliott's face in their hands, they leaned down for a kiss. "Do not be sad, dearest."

"Where did you get your scars?" Elliott asked suddenly.

Unconsciously, Bloth raised a hand to their face. "The Apex Games, mostly, and when I was younger." They went in for another kiss to shut him up.

Elliott sat up, then pushed Bloth down so they were lying on the couch under him. Softly, he began to leave kisses across their face.

"Have I told you that you're the most attractive person I have ever met?"

"You have."

"And that I absolutely adore you and love you more than anything?"

"That, too. And I love you just as much, if not more, Elliott."


	7. That the Media Just Has to Get up in Our Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I haven't been very free with my time and I'm sorry for the short chapter. I plan to upload the next one very soon. Thank you for your patience :)

Bloth carefully pushed Elliott's head away to interrupt the flow of gentle kisses he placed along their neck. "It tickles," they murmured.

Looking into their eyes, Elliott couldn't hold back a smile. "That's the point."

"You are childish."

"And you," he kissed their forehead, "are amazing."

"Do you ever run out of compliments?" Bloth played with Elliott's hair. "I am getting hungry."

"Pork chops," Elliott said. "I'll make pork chops."

Bloth didn't want to admit it to their pork chop-loving boyfriend, but their stomach was begging for a little more variety in their diet. "We could learn how to cook something other than pork chops, perhaps?"

Elliott exaggerating a frown. "Are my pork chops not good enough for you?"

"No, no, no, _elskan_ , I love them," they quickly replied. "It is just… I do not want to resort to junk food whenever we do not want to cook pork chops."

Elliott sighed. "I'm too lazy."

"Then no more kisses."

"I can give you kisses instead."

"No more… cuddling."

Throwing himself across Bloth's lap, Elliott dramatically moaned. "You wouldn't last an _hour_ without my cuddles."

Bloth gently pushed Elliott off of them and got up from the couch. They slipped on their shoes and began to head out the door. "Quite the opposite, my beloved. I do not think you could last minutes without me."

"Hey, let's not prove it." Elliott jumped up from the couch and followed after them to the front door. "I guess we should learn to cook something else…"

Bloth turned to wrap their arms around Elliott's waist and nuzzled their face into his neck. "Good," They replied. Grabbing their mask from the table, they slipped it over their head and shut the door behind them, with a slow Elliott following behind.

Elliott yawned. "Y'know what? Maybe I could stay home and nap instead."

Bloodhound grabbed his hand and began to pull him down the street. "I want you to come with me," they said.

"Is that a suggestion?"

"It is an order."

"Ooh, an _order?_ " Elliott purred. "Maybe you should order me around more often."

Bloodhound rolled their eyes under their mask. "Why must you always be so… what is the word? Aroused? Suggestive?"

"I'm not! I'm not. I try not to be around you. Er, that came out wrong. I meant I'm never aroused. Yeah." Elliott tried to keep up with Bloodhound's faster pace.

"You can keep telling yourself that." Bloodhound slowed down until Elliott was by their side again.

Despite the teasing, Elliott enjoyed spending this time with Bloodhound. Soon, the two arrived at the grocery store, and Bloodhound listed off an assortment of items that they wanted Elliott to go find.

"Bread, flour, sugar, frosting, cupcakes, cookies, I've got you." Elliott began to walk in a random direction.

Bloodhound grabbed at his arm. "That is not even close to what I said. Nevermind, _elskan_ , come with me. And do not wander off."

Elliott pushed the cart alongside Bloodhound as they looked over ingredients on their holopad.

"What're you planning on cooking?" Elliott glanced over at their screen.

Bloodhound turned the device so Elliott could read the name of the recipe better. "Fish."

Elliott began to scrunch his nose. "Really? Not a cake, or brownies, or maybe tacos?"

"Cake and brownies are _not_ good dinner choices, but if you would like tacos, we can look for the ingredients while we are here." Bloodhound put various seasoning packets into the cart.

"How about… burgers?"

"Is there not any healthier options you would prefer?"

Elliott sighed. "That's boring."

"Having gross, detrimental meals everyday is boring."

"Are my pork chops detra-, deter-, d… gross?"

"No, sweetheart," Bloodhound began to head towards the butcher area. "I told you that I enjoy them."

Elliott stayed silent.

"Do not be sad, Eli."

"I'm not."

"You are pouting. Although I will admit it is adorable, it is making me feel guilty." Bloodhound paused for a moment and reached their hand to pat Elliott's cheek.

"Can we get candy?" Elliott continued to look gloomy.

A sigh on Bloodhound's part. "Only if you behave," they said.

The rest of the shopping trip consisted of Elliott's little begs, much like a child, and Bloodhound's search for healthier choices for dinner.

They arrived at the checkout area, their cart in tow, almost filled to the brim. The lady in front of them had a lot in her cart as well, so Bloodhound and Elliott had a bit of time to spend while they waited.

"Check this out, Houndy." Elliott pointed at a small paragraph on the cover of a tabloid magazine. The caption under it read: " **The Daily Lives (and Loves) of the Apex Games' Top Legends, Including some special news about the alluring Bloodhound!** "

"It is probably some nonsense about me and Artur." Bloodhound waved the magazine away.

Elliott flipped it open. "Um, actually, it's a little more than that."

"Let me see." They gazed at the page until they saw the fairly large section about them, including a somewhat blurry picture of Elliott and them holding hands in the Drop Ship. "Wait a second," Bloodhound squinted closer at the article.

 _"In this secret photo taken from the Drop Ship cameras,"_ the article began, _"we can see what looks like the closed-off, elusive, and quite frankly irritable Bloodhound holding hands with new teammate and Legend Mirage, or also known as Elliott Witt. This isn't the first time a love affair has been hinted between the two. Ever since Mirage's first game when enemy Bloodhound saved him, they've seemingly been inseparable. But this couple does appear to be a fan-favorite, with fans dubbing the duo 'MirageHound.' What will we see next between the heartthrob holographic trickster and the gifted, dangerous tracker?"_

Elliott closed the magazine and placed it back on the rack. "No one believes this stuff. Don't worry, honeybun."

"That is not what I am concerned about. It is extremely insolent and rude that they pry into people's personal lives like that." Bloodhound's voice seemed to get quieter with every word they spoke.

"Don't be mad. It's just something that comes with fame."

"It is disgusting. I do not mind if it is simple fake stories and such, but _taking pictures?_ People are so disrespectful." They began to put their items up on the checkout machine.

Once all their items were bagged, they began their trek home. Bloodhound did not talk for most of the walk.

Elliott didn't know what to say. He was used to the fame, the constant peering into his personal life. In fact, living in a household with three older brothers made him an extremely open and boastful person; always looking for the attention of his siblings and mother. He understood that it was a tribal and personal matter to his dear Bloth, but he wanted to comfort them, at least.

"Baby, it'll all blow over soon." Elliott walked a little closer to them.

They didn't reply.

"Sometimes, you have to deal with the people. Yeah, it's annoying, but it's a nesa-... a necessary part of being famous."

"That is not what I am angry about," Bloodhound muttered. "People have no respect. Something like this would never, ever happen in my tribe. People need to have personal boundaries, lines that they are aware they cannot cross. I would prefer that our relationship was not announced through a… _kúkalabbi_ gossip magazine, but rather through our own mouths."

"What'd you just say?" The random foreign words Bloth would slip into their sentences, which seemed to only happen during the rare moments when they were showing strong emotion, were new to Elliott, but a welcome surprise.

"Ah, it is a swear word."

"My sweet little Bloth? _Swearing?_ You don't even swear in English."

They replied, "I apologize. I did not mean to."

"It was pretty cute, don't apologize," said Elliott affectionately. "If I was in your position, I think I would share the news before the magazine gets around. Then, at least most people would hear it from you rather than the rumor mill."

Bloodhound stayed quiet and thought about what to say.

"But you don't have to force yourself. I know you're not big on affection and stuff. I could always go around and run my mouth for you, if you'd like. Save you the trouble of telling ever-"

Elliott's sentence was cut short by Bloodhound's finger being held to his lips. "I will do it, my beloved."

Elliott smiled at his lover and continued to walk home.

 

 

Bloth leaned down and planted kisses across his cheeks and lips. "Did you want to attend the next Game?" They asked in between smooches.

"Do we have to? Let's just spend the day cuddling and sleeping… preferably together." Elliott held their head gently in his hands.

"We do that all the time."

"How about," Elliott brushed a strand of hair behind Bloth's ear, "you come help me at the bar. We can throw an after-party for the Legends."

"If you wish."

"Mwah!" Elliott gave Bloth a big kiss on the forehead. "Promise to never leave me, darling, because I am absolutely in love with you! I adore you, Bloth."

Bloth was suddenly quite flustered. "I… I promise, Eli."


	8. What I've Been Missing in My Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i apologize for the delay. i've been awfully busy. i'm starting to get more inspiration, thankfully.  
> 1000 hits! i never thought it would reach this many haha.  
> thank you always for your support, and i hope you stick along until the end... coming soon :(

"Congratulations on the win, Wraith!" Elliott patted her back and led her to the counter. "What would you like to drink?"

A small smile framed her face, which was a rare sight so it was obvious that she was in a good mood. "Thanks, Elliot, and a beer would be great."

Wraith's squad was the last to arrive of the Legends, and the place was packed with competitors and fans alike. Elliott had a few of his decoys doing some of the work for him, and he told Bloodhound that they could "sit back and socialize," rather than help him out around the bar. He spotted them talking to Anita at one of the tables.

Wraith rapped her fist on the counter as if she was knocking on a door. "Hey, Mirage, are you there?" She had a hand raised and waving in his face.

"Of course I am," he said as he turned his gaze back to her. "I'm just a little distracted."

"Distracted by what?" Wraith nodded to someone waving at her from the entrance. Elliott did not know her real name, much like he used to not know Bloodhound's name. Her whole story was quite strange, even compared to the other Legends in the Games; "woke up in a mental asylum, creepy voices helped me escape, and now I'm pretty damn good in the Apex Games with their help."

Shrugging, Elliott avoided her question but kept an eye on Bloodhound. He sent a decoy to talk to Wraith and made his way over to his lover. Sometimes, a fake hologram of himself could keep a conversation going better than he could.

He swung an arm over their shoulder once he approached them, but they didn't shrug him off. Instead, they leaned a little closer into him.

"Hey, Elliott, your decoys can really do anything, huh?" Anita gestured to his clone that was offering her a drink and making a few somewhat unfunny jokes.

"Yeah, isn't it cool? I don't mean to brag, but I think my decoys have more personality than that Caustic dude," said Elliott.

"Actually, dear," Bloodhound emphasized the pet name, "your decoy was telling us a little story about a wonderful night you had once with… pumpkins?"

Anita was trying to hold back her laughter.

Quickly acquiring a blush on his face, Elliott scowled at the clone. "Have no idea what he's talking about. In fact, you shouldn't listen to him. He's crazy, a prototype, got some bugs in him. Don't listen to him."

"Ah, I would like to hear more of the story." Bloodhound brought a hand up to rest upon Elliott's chest.

Elliott glanced at Anita to see if she had noticed Bloodhound's silent affections, but she was too busy laughing at his pumpkin story.

"It's not true! I don't like pumpkins like that. I never did. I found some kind of weird mushroom, and… and…"

Anita took in a deep breath. "Oh, that is funny." She gave Bloodhound a large smile. "I'll catch you two later; I'm gonna go find Natalie."

Elliott waited for her to get out of earshot, then turned to Bloodhound. "Does she know? Did she find out about us?"

Bloodhound nodded. "She did."

"How do you know?"

"I am good at reading people. I could read her mind; she could not stop thinking about how someone like you is affiliated with someone like me."

Elliott pouted his lips. "She did not! You can't read minds!" He put a hand on top of their head affectionately.

"I am only teasing, beloved. She commented on the fact that we spend all our time together and I told her. Word spreads fast, and a lot of the Legends already had a feeling."

"Now everyone knows you're all mine." Elliott took Bloodhound's hand into his and squeezed it. "Come stand with me at the bar. If you want to, I'm not forcing you to. You don't even have to help me. I want you close to me, that's all."

Bloodhound smiled up at Elliott, even if he couldn't see their facial expression. "Of course, I would love to."

 

\---

 

Elliott brought Bloodhound into his arms as soon as they entered the dark house. "Sweetheart, let's spend the night cuddling and watching movies."

" _Elskan,_ " said Bloodhound as they removed their mask. "It is already almost daylight out. Why not rest a bit? You look awfully tired from entertaining everyone all night."

"But I'm not tired. And anyways," Elliott rested his chin against the top of their head, "I can just take a nap while we cuddle."

They both got out of their daytime clothes and into their more comfortable pajamas, then settled onto the couch. Elliott sat up against the back of the couch while Bloth laid their head upon his shoulder.

"Tell me about your family," Bloth whispered as they turned on the TV to a random channel.

"My family?" Elliott carefully brushed his fingers through their hair. "Well, you talked to my mom already. I stuck around with her for a while before I joined the Games, building holotech devices and helping her around the house and stuff. Then I came to the Games and she still helps me improve my gear all the time. That sounds kind of lame now that I say it out loud, but she's been a real help to me."

"Your mother is very friendly," Bloth commented. "I find it easy to get along with her, like you."

"Yeah, that's always been one of her traits; she's very talkative. Maybe that's where I got it from."

"What about your father?"

"Did I tell you anything about him? Honestly… he died when I was young. He was a holopilot. I never saw him much. He was always off fighting in some war and one day he just never came home."

Bloodhound leaned in close and laid a gentle kiss on Elliott's neck. "I am sorry about that."

"Aw, baby," Elliott said. "It's alright. It was hard for our family for a while, but we got through. Me and my mom."

"What about your brothers?"

Elliott shifted a bit. "Them too."

Bloth pursed their lips. "Died?" They whispered after a moment.

"Missing in Action. So, yeah. That was a while ago, but my mom… she's doing alright."

"That is always a terrible thing to happen to any family," said Bloth. "If you do not mind me asking, how old were you?"

Elliott scratched his beard. "They disappeared when I was... eighteen. I'm thirty right now, so about twelve years ago. Feels like a lot longer. Anyways, after my dad died, they were who I looked up to for guidance. And then, all of a sudden…" Elliott shrugged a bit. “Shit happens. I don’t like dwelling on the past.”

Bloth placed their hand over Elliott’s and remained quiet.

“You know I have a dog?”

“A dog?” Bloth turned to look at Elliott. “No, you never told me.”

Chuckling, Elliott pulled out his holopad. “He’s an old fart. Dad brought him home for me and my brothers when I was about… thirteen? Something like that. He found him on some kind of weird planet he was sent to fight on, so maybe he’s not exactly a dog. He looks close enough like a dog, so we just call him one. All the old books say normal dogs don’t live nearly as long as him. He could be, like, immortal.”

He swiped through a couple of pictures in the gallery on his device- Bloth saw a few shameless ‘selfies’ of him- and stopped at a photo of a teenage Elliott holding in his arms what looked like a plump, brown dog.

“I was the youngest, so I got to name him. Can you guess what I named him?”

Bloth squinted at the picture. The background was the front of a nice brick house with a blooming garden, while Elliott stood on the sidewalk in attire for a very hot day. His grin was lined with braces; not unexpected, but completely dorky and adorable.

“Did you name him 'Elliott'?” Bloth asked teasingly.

“Okay, wow. I’m not that full of myself. No, I named him 'Pork Chop'. Creative, right?” Elliott sighed. “I’m hungry.”

Yawning, Bloth cuddled closer to their beloved. “I am sleepy.”

“Conflicting interests. You can sleep if you’d like, but I’m gonna go make cookies.”

“Cookies? Eli, it is… it is…” They held their hand in front of their mouth to conceal their yawn.

“I have a huge craving. I’ll die if I don’t get any.” Elliott slid his arms underneath their body and lifted them bridal style.

Bloth scowled but did not have the energy to fight back. Elliott brought them to the couch that was located closer to the kitchen. “So I can look at you while I make cookies. Two sweets at the same time, you might give me a cavity.”

They had gotten used to the extremely cheesy flirts by now. In fact, Bloth thought they were a bit charming. They secretly enjoyed the attention, despite how strange it was.

Elliott began to grab the ingredients out of the cabinet. “So, Bloth,” he called to them.

“Yes?” Bloth laid themself across the couch but made sure that they were able to see Elliott through the doorway to the kitchen.

“What did you think your future was going to be like when you were younger?”

Bloth paused before answering. “Well,” they began hesitantly. “I did not often think about that. The Gods decide our fates; we cannot change that.”

“Really?” Elliott began to mix the ingredients for the dough. He poured in some chocolate chips, maybe a bit too many. “You didn’t ever wonder about it?”

“I…” Bloth closed their eyes. Faint memories of the sand dunes beyond the town. The heat of the sun creating waves over the ground. The quiet drone of people chatting throughout the settlement. “I somewhat knew I would be a hunter of sorts. Even as a _lítið barn_ , the townspeople looked to me for my skills. ‘A gift from the Gods’ is what they called my talents.”

“I’ve never met someone who could track people so well. Honestly, you’re scary out on the battlefield. I’m glad we’re staying on the same team now.” Elliott smiled to himself. Even when Bloth was relentlessly chasing down an enemy, his heart would pound faster, a blush would appear on his face, and other more embarrassing reactions would occur. They were attractive, in a fierce, terrifying way.

“I never thought…” Their accent began to get stronger as they were steadily getting more exhausted. “I never thought I would be with another person. I do not get along with people, usually. But you, Elliott, you feel so natural to talk to. I can let my guard down around you.”

Elliott froze for a moment as his stomach twisted. That’s all he wanted to hear from them, for he felt the same way. He could be himself around them, too.

“I used to think I would be some kind of soldier, like my brothers and my father. My mom convinced me to change my mind when my brothers went missing. I don’t think I’d be strong-willed enough for it, anyways.” He began to mold the dough into balls and place them on the pan. “Bloth?”

A murmur came from the couch.

“I… I’m thankful for you. I’ve always felt- I dunno how to put it. Less important? My brothers were always the center of attention because they were older and already off doing their own things. But you make me feel like I mean something. I’m not just any regular person to you. You make me feel special, and I appreciate it.”

Bloth opened their eyes and watched Elliott as he silently wiped something off of his face and take in a deep breath. “ _Elskan,_ ” they whispered.

“And I’m not normally cocky and arrogant. Doesn’t it annoy you? It almost feels like I put on that goofy act so at least some people will pay attention to me. Everyone likes the talkative, flirty, clumsy guy that cracks jokes all the time.” He idly poked at the dough balls. “I can be myself with you. I can be honest and tell you anything. You’re amazing at listening. You even like my stupid pick-up lines! Those always chase people away. How do you handle me?”

“Eli,” they said. “I feel the same. You are… exciting. Other people seem boring, but I can never predict you. I thought I would be content spending my life fulfilling the Gods’ plans. You must be one of their plans, Elliott. A plan for me to find happiness, finally.” Bloth finished their sentence with a loud yawn.

Elliott picked up the pan, placed it in the oven and set a timer. For once in his life, he was speechless. After a few minutes of leaning against the counter and thinking, he called their name. They let out a small, sleepy noise in response.

“How do you think about getting married?” Elliott asked after a long pause.

No response. Then a couple of snores from the couch.

Elliott took a seat on the kitchen floor and closed his eyes. “I don’t want to lose them,” he whispered to himself. “I feel so much happier with them than I have been in a long time.”

After his brothers had died, he was lost. The only male figures he had in his life had suddenly left. He remembered how he had spent days lying on his bed and stared at the ceiling. “Was being a soldier the right thing for me?” He thought to himself. “What if the same thing happens to me? I can’t do that to Mom.”

All through his childhood, he admired the fearlessness and enthusiasm that his father and brothers had shown towards defending their people and homeland. It was inspiring. But it wasn’t right for him. He realized that.

With no older brothers to dote on him and tease him, he changed. His personality and mentality evolved. Rather than being a sweet, honest, excited boy, he was now craving attention from others. He became flirty, overly confident, and frankly a bit annoying. As long as people talked to him and pretended to like him, he was happy. Friends moved away after they became adults, and he was left with his mom; the only person he could be himself around. Until Bloth.

Elliott did not know how to explain it. Bloth felt familiar, almost as if they had met before. Right away, Elliott was comfortable around them. He quickly developed feelings. His whole motto was to attract people, maybe have an exciting little fling, then dip. But this time, these feelings were real. He spent nights tossing and turning, wondering what he could do to get their attention.

His normal act didn’t seem to work on them. What could he do? He knew that if he let them slip away, he would deeply regret it. Somewhere in the back of his mind, and his heart, he knew they were the one. The one who he could be honest with.

Marriage was never on Elliott Witt’s mind. He never thought anyone would return mutual feelings for him. Sure, it was sudden. They had just moved in together only about a month or two ago, but Elliott was completely confident this was the right decision. He didn’t want to lose them. He couldn’t.

After pulling the warm cookies out of the oven, he ate a few then set them on the counter to cool off. Without realizing how tired he really was, he fell asleep sitting on the floor, slumped against the wall.


	9. That I Should Have Never Helped You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for once i'm updating quick?!  
> i was just so excited to write this chapter. i'm not lying when i say i wrote up the general plot for this chapter and the next one before the rest of the story.  
> thank you, always, for reading. it means a lot that i can share my passions and people actually like them.

“Mom?” Elliott stared blankly at the computer screen.

“Honey? Why do you sound so sad?” Her voice lowered to a soothing tone.

Elliott scrolled down the webpage another time to make sure he wasn’t imagining it. “I found them.”

 

 

Elliott rubbed his eyes, realizing he had fallen asleep on the kitchen floor. There was still the faint smell of chocolate chip cookies in the air, combined with the natural, unique aroma of herbs stashed around Bloth’s house.

He stood up and looked at the counter where he had placed the cookies to cool last night. A few were missing. Guiltily, Elliott placed a hand on his stomach. Had he eaten more while he was asleep? It’s not like he hadn’t done that before. It had happened a few times when he was younger, and a bit more of a binge eater.

Stepping out into the living room, he looked for Bloth, expecting them to already be awake and reading a novel on the couch, or maybe playing with Artur, but they were nowhere in sight.

Elliott was about to call their name when he noticed a piece of paper lying on the coffee table. He picked it up and squinted at the fine, elegant penmanship. Of course Bloth would write a note rather than sending an easy text.

“I have gone out training. I will be back soon, beloved. (The cookies were amazing.)”

At least they had left him a note, and unknowingly comforted his fear that he had developed his sleep-eating habit again. Reaching his hands to the air, he groaned as his muscles were stretched after a long night of sleeping upright on the tile floor against a hardwood cabinet.

Elliott didn’t know when Bloth would be back. What could he do with all this time? Call his mom? Go out shopping? He wasn’t in the mood for either.

He wandered into the guest bedroom that Bloth had lent him to stay in, at least until they got comfortable enough to let him sleep in the same bed as them. They had changed it into a sort of altar room, for they never had guests, but Elliott didn’t mind. It was relaxing and gave him a feeling of belonging. He would never tell, but sometimes he said a small greeting to Bloth’s Gods when he entered the room, to be respectful.

Sitting on the guest bed, Elliott grabbed his laptop from the bedside table and opened it. He had been busy and a bit too lazy to put any time into his personal research project, but his depressed state of thinking last night had inspired him. He was sure that if he put some time and effort into it, he would be able to find something. Occasionally, they released new information about stuff from years ago.

Elliott began to type into the search bar. The year of the incident, the squad they were in, their names, anything that could lead him towards a solution.

He didn’t realize the amount of time that had passed before he found something worthwhile. That was the understatement of the year; this was a major find.

 

 

  
“I found them,” Elliott held the holopad closer to his mouth.

His mother paused before speaking. “Elliott, what are you talking about?”

“Mom, I found out what happened to them. All of them. I was looking online and-” He saved the website and began to send the data to the printer. “It says what happened to them.”

He could hear sniffling coming from the other end. “You… What happened to them, Eli?”

“I’ll send it to you. I’ll come right now. I’m going to come over.” He jumped up from the bed and grabbed the sheets of paper from the printer. He made himself a copy and one for his mother. “Mom, we finally know.”

She was speechless. The only response she could muster was a trembling breath.

Leaving his copy on the bed, Elliott swiftly put on his shoes. “I’ll be there soon, I love you.” He hung up and began to call a cab to come pick him up.

Through the three hour drive there, all he could do was stare at the paper. He would reread it, then read it again because he couldn’t focus on it. After years of searching and praying, it was all here. The truth of where his brothers were hiding.

 

\---

 

Bloodhound entered the house, still smelling like Elliott’s desserts from last night. “Elliott? Are you awake yet?” They shut the door behind them.

As soon as they came home, Elliott would always give them a nice big hug. Where was he now? There wasn’t any noise coming from throughout the house. Maybe he had gone out as well? He hadn’t texted them, nor left a note.

Artur flew to the kitchen counter and let out a small chirp. He eyed the cookies hungrily.

“No, _gæludýr fugl._ You can have some mice instead.” They walked to the miniature freezer for the raven's food, removed an already dead mouse, and left it out to thaw for Artur.

Elliott, at first, was a bit taken aback that they kept Artur’s food in such a human compartment when he first moved in. “Would you rather I put it in the refrigerator instead?” Responded Bloodhound.

Elliott scrunched his nose and shook his head. “No, no. I was just wondering.”

Once again, Elliott was on their mind. Last night, hearing his voice become quieter as he spoke his honest feelings, was such a heart-wrenching experience. His usual loud, confident self had suddenly disappeared. It was a bit worrying to Bloth. They didn’t know their sweetheart had such a concealed side to him.

Generally, they had always thought that people were too scared to talk to them. The Legends had gotten used to them; even then, it took a long time before they warmed up to Bloodhound. It was more so the spectators and viewers that tended to be attracted to Mirage’s light, friendly personality and attractive face rather than their chilling mask that hid their face and their quiet nature. Bloodhound was fine with that. Fame was never their cup of tea.

But hearing Elliott say that he could be himself around them, that he normally was a calmer guy, it made Bloth’s heart seize. They almost didn’t feel worthy enough to see that side of their beloved.

All the time, they pondered and questioned exactly why Elliott was placed in Bloodhound’s life path. The Gods had to have had a good reason.

The past few months that Elliott and they had spent together, since the very first day they met, Bloth felt there was a divine pulling for them to stick together. The odd thing was, the Gods had even come down and given them messages about that day. That was not a normal occurrence.

It shocked people all over the galaxy too. Seeing the terrifying, reclusive Bloodhound show mercy to an enemy? Nobody expected that.

But they still hadn’t been able to figure out why. Why him? Was he another blessing, just like their extraordinary hunting skills? Sent to teach them how to feel, how to loosen up, how to love?

Bloth had heard Elliott’s question last night. A question they never expected to hear or thought they deserved to hear. The only reason they did not respond was that they were rendered speechless. As they thought of a response to say, they had shamefully fallen asleep.

They left early in the morning, unable to confront Elliott. They were distracted during training, feeling sheepish and remorseful that they had not answered him. They knew how serious of a topic that was. In the Old World, huge celebrations were held when people found the one they were meant to be with. That tradition continued through the thousands of years since humans had left “Earth”.

They decided they would bring it up once he got home. They too thought it was the right time. Never, in their life, had Bloodhound been so close to another human. Birds, sure. Not someone of the same species. And they didn’t want to ever let Elliott go.

A chime came from one of the bedrooms. Artur immediately flew off the counter to check it out. Bloth followed him into the guest bedroom and watched him land in front of Elliott’s laptop. He must have gotten a notification, but forgot to shut off the device before leaving the house. A piece of paper lay on the bed as well, but they paid no attention to it. They were not going to be inquisitive and read it.

They walked over to the laptop and placed their hand on the top to close it until they saw something on the screen that made them pause.

Why was that name showing up?

It wasn’t like they had ever told him the name. They had never told anyone. They hesitantly sat down on the bed. It couldn’t be that Elliott had randomly decided to look up words in other languages. That couldn’t be the reason.

They peered closer at the screen.

“The team, consisting of Jonathan Witt, the leader, accompanied by Riley Witt, Jackson Witt, Corey McNeil, and Louisa Madigan landed in the Outlands on June twelfth at 15:00. They quickly approached the site of the mission: the location of the tribe named the ‘ _Fólk í Bænum Eyðimörk_ ’ residing near a base.”

Bloodhound’s sharp incisors bit at the inside of their cheek. This couldn’t be what they thought it was.

“After arriving, the team was soon met with the hostile stance of the natives, armed with hunting knives and spears. Although peace was the first and preferred option, the team commenced with the other plan at the sight of the aggressive people, rather than getting caught off guard from a sudden attack. They fought the aborigines, but they were overpowered with their meager team of six. Backup had been called in too late. Jonathan Witt, along with his brothers Riley, Jackson, and fellow soldier Corey McNiel had been slain. Louisa Madigan was admitted to Direct Care, where she survived her injuries.

The Witt brothers and McNiel were announced ‘Missing in Action,’ due to the situation of the mission in which they perished.  
The mission to remove the tribal people was a swift success, albeit not the method desired, and the territory around the base was acquired.”

Bloodhound quickly lifted their hand off of the laptop, as if it was searing hot. Their breathing rose to a rapid pace, and they ripped off their mask. What felt like bugs ran along their arms and the back of their neck.

Witt? Elliott’s last name? His brothers?

For once in a very long time, Bloth could not think straight. Questions, swears, and prayers played on a loop in their head.

Why my people? Why my people? Why mine? Why Elliott?

What kind of a sick joke had the Gods played on them? The only person they had ever trusted, ever talked to about their past, ever showed their face to. Why did it have to be the only person they loved?

Standing up with trembling legs, they grabbed their mask and made their way to the living room. Elliott’s faint cologne wafted through the air. The sweet, sharp, disgusting smell. Bloth ran to the bathroom and leaned over the toilet.

They gagged, yet their stomach was empty. Sweat dripped off of their chin and made their thick hair cling to their damp temples. This was a foreign feeling to them. Not since…

Not since their tribe, their home, was obliterated at the hands of Elliott Witt’s brothers.

Bloth’s stomach toiled as they laid down on the cold tile floor. They knew it was too good to be true, like anything even slightly blessed in life. Despite their diligent following of the Gods, their everlasting devotion even after they killed their family, it still wasn’t enough. They had sent that man to torture Bloth, to remember the pain that they had brought them so many years ago.

They couldn’t even think of his name without immediately throwing their head over the toilet in anticipation that they would lose their stomach contents.

Artur hopped to the door of the bathroom and stood at the entrance, staring at his human companion. His small, round eyes seemed to display a hint of sorrow.

Taking in a deep breath, Bloth motioned Artur to come to them. The bird obediently approached them and nuzzled against their arm.

After a moment, Bloth realized that something else was mixing with their sweat on their face. Big, fat tears plopped off their face and onto their lap.

Angrily, they wiped their eyes with their sleeve. A sob began to rise in their throat, but they pushed it away. They shouldn’t be crying over a _fjandinn lygari._

Getting up slowly, they made a mental list. They wouldn’t need much else than they usually brought to the Games.

They slid their mask back on and put on their mud-covered boots. Artur flew up to their shoulder and let out a small noise, almost as if he was assuring Bloodhound of their decision. Looking back once more at their home, they took in a breath.

How ridiculous they had been to even consider spending the rest of their life with him.

Without a second thought, they shut the door behind them.


	10. How Lonely I Feel Without You Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter!  
> I'm saddened to say that there are only a couple chapters left.  
> It's been an experience to actually finish a fic I'm proud of, and the support I've been getting is incredible.  
> Thank you.

Straight to voicemail. Just like the three hundred other times Elliott called. He was beginning to get somewhat irritated. Had they forgotten to charge their phone? Did they get mad at him for not telling them where he went, so they were being petty and declining all his calls? Or, even worse: had they blocked him?

Elliott had his fair share of people who had blocked him, but it never hurt him. They were too boring to understand him or his funny images and jokes. But even just the thought that they had blocked him… his stomach dropped.

He sent one more “honey?” text before tossing his holopad onto the cushion next to him. He placed his head in his hands. From the other room, he could hear his mother shuffling with something, probably to distract her from the sudden news. He wanted to hug her, comfort her, at least do something, but she shooed any of his attempts away.

“I’m fine, Eli,” she had said to him in a hoarse voice. “Give me a bit.”

Checking his holopad, knowing full well he would be disappointed at the lack of a response, he stared at the lock screen wallpaper devoid of notifications.

The image was of Elliott and Bloodhound at his bar one night, their body leaning into him as he slung his arm over their shoulders. It was not a very good picture; the lighting was subpar, and Elliott was in the midst of telling Bloodhound something while he took the selfie. “You’re breathtaking, Houndy,” he had said to them. It was a drunken comment, but he meant every ounce of it.

The way their mask lent them an aura of enchantment, the relaxed posture they had with a glass in one hand and the other around Elliott’s waist, and the casual outfit of one of Elliott’s hoodies that they wore for him that night. Elliott couldn’t get over them. They looked beautiful with anything they did.

It was his favorite picture.

He stared at the photo until his holopad screen turned off.

It was already night out. If he left now, he would get to Bloodhound’s house - his home - in a few hours. His mother didn’t seem to want him there. She preferred to keep her emotions to herself, he discovered through his childhood. If she walked through the room, she had a vacant expression on her face. The same way she acted when his brothers first went missing.

Where could Bloth be? It was strange that they hadn’t texted him for so long. He began to worry. Were they hurt? Sure, they could fend for themself, but why hadn’t they texted him?

“Mom?” He called.

“What, Elliott?” She peeked from behind the door of her bedroom. Her face was puffy and tear-stained.

Elliott turned his head away. It broke his heart to see his mother like that. “Do you want me to get you anything? Something from the store?”

She slowly shook her head. “I’m fine right now. Are you spending the night…?”

“No, actually, I was going to go back to my house.”

His mother looked a bit relieved. She closed herself off from the world, including her family, when she was upset. Elliott knew this all too well when it first happened with his dad, and then his brothers.

“I love you, Mom.” He held his arms out to her.

She slowly emerged from her bedroom and walked to his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder. “Thank you, Elliott.”

“Call me if you need anything, and I’ll come over as fast as I can.” Elliott took in her scent. The achingly familiar smell of flowers and the Witt home.

“I will, Eli,” she said. “I love you.”

“Oh, I have some good news I forgot to tell you.” Maybe this would at least cheer her up a bit.

“What is it?” She leaned back from the hug and gazed up at him.

“I’m thinking of, uh,” he looked away bashfully. “I wanna propose to Bloodhound.”

His mother smiled gently. “Are they ready for that?”

He hadn’t thought of it in that way. He was sure that they loved him, but marriage was a big step. Elliott was ready for it, but he would mention it to Bloth once he got home. “Don’t tell them I told you about it. Let me ask them.”

“You two are wonderful together. They compliment you. They’re like the adult bringing you places and you’re the child showing them how to have fun.”

“Okay, that was a weird and mean comparison. I am not a child!” Elliott hugged her once more. “I miss you, Mom. Please, let me know if you need anything. I’ll be here for you.”

 

 

“Bloodhound?” Elliott opened the front door slowly. It was way past midnight, but they were a bit of a night owl. They would still be awake, probably sitting on the couch and reading a book.

No response to their name being called.

“Artur?” He clicked his tongue to get the bird’s attention.

Still no response.

He walked into the house and looked around. Strangely, the house looked messier than it was before he had left. Some lights were left on, and the TV was still playing a random program.

What had happened?

Elliott called Bloth once more. Maybe they had left their phone at home. He dialed them and listened closely for a ringtone somewhere in the house, but it went straight to voicemail once again.

They had not left a note anywhere. No sign as to where they were, either.

His palms began to perspire. This couldn’t be good. This was unlike Houndy. Where had they gone?

A feeling in his gut knew that something bad had happened with them.

Involuntarily, he raised a hand to cover his mouth while he yawned. It was a stressful day. Normally, he would be tired after such a busy day, and despite his body telling him to sleep, his mind was buzzing with worry.

Elliott entered the guest bedroom where he usually slept. He stopped in front of the altar on the table. It had what looked to be strange symbols etched into wood carvings, and fresh herbs and flowers surrounded the sides.

“Hey, uh, Gods…” Elliott awkwardly put his hands together in a praying position. He waited for some kind of response, then realized how unrealistic that was. “I just…”

He shrugged his shoulders. “I hope you take care of my Houndy. I know I’m not, like, a follower or anything. But there’s gotta be something out there, right? Whatever you are, I hope you watch over them. They deserve the world, honestly. I don’t think I’d be where I am without them. I’d probably quit the Games by now and be back home with my mom, sitting around on my fat ass and doing nothing but tinkering around with holoclones of myself.”

Elliott scowled at the description of himself. “But, um, thank you. Thank you for leading them to me, like they were talking about. Our paths collided for a reason, and although it sounds a little weird at first, I completely believe them now. So, thanks. And bring them home to me soon. I want cuddles.” He waved at the ceiling, as if to end the prayer session, and walked over to his bed.

He placed his laptop and the dastardly piece of paper he had printed onto the bedside table. He laid down on the bed and attempted to close his eyes, but was unable to keep his mind off of the unrealisitic image of a helpless Bloodhound shivering out in the twilight desert.

“Come home,” he whispered.

 

\---

 

“Bangalore, Mirage, and Wattson? Isn’t Mirage usually with Bloodhound?” A man turned to his friend and asked.

“Yeah, but I heard Bloodhound didn’t even sign up for this Game. They always participate,” the other man said. “Bangalore! A selfie! Please!”

Bangalore threw a peace sign at the fan and continued to walk towards the Drop Ship.

“Mirage!” A woman yelled for him. He turned and waved towards where the direction of the voice came from.

“What happened to the MirageHound duo?” She yelled over the crowd.

Elliott pretended to not hear her.

The squads entered the Drop Ship and took their seats. “If you don’t mind me asking,” Wattson began. “Where’s Bl-”

Bangalore placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her head. Wattson got the message and didn’t finish her question.

They hadn’t come home that first night. Elliott stayed up all night listening for the sound of their keys in the door lock. Then the next night, and the night after. Not even a notification from them on the holopad. But he had no way to find them. Nobody else seemed to have seen them either.

He joined the next Apex Game in hopes that they would also join, but he arrived disappointed. They were nowhere to be found. He straightened up in his seat. Even if he didn’t have a lead as to where they were, King’s Canyon was the location where his brothers had been declared “Missing in Action.” He could pay a quick visit, take a little time to pay respects to them since the location was not open to anybody outside of the Games.

“Now arriving in King’s Canyon,” the announcer spoke over the intercom.

Elliott nodded to Bangalore and Wattson. “How about Airbase?” It wasn’t usually crowded there, and it was close enough where Elliott wanted to go, so he could sneak off after a bit of looting.

The two women agreed, and when the ship was close enough over Airbase they jumped. Mirage kept his eyes shut as they fell. It was harder without Bloth there to hold him and tease him on the way down.

As they landed, another squad ran off to get loot as fast as they could. Elliott quickly acquired a Hemlok, and although it wasn’t his weapon of choice, it was his best option. He fired at a Legend running into a building and missed every shot except for one that just scraped their arm.

Bangalore ran into the building after them and downed them. Wattson was occupied in her own gunfight, although the enemy was attempting to punch her rather than shoot.

He looked around for the last enemy, or _andskoti_ , as Bloodhound would call them. They would have easily been able to track down the last Legend and end the Game with the most kills, a common occurrence with them.

God, he missed them.

A shot was fired into his back, and he fell over in shock. The pain was still excruciating, even if dying was impossible during the Games. He quickly hid behind a storage crate and peeked around the corner. A Legend began to run at him. Mirage jumped up and shot at them from his cover, then ducked down again.

The enemy suddenly approached around the corner and fired, until they fell over with their shields shredded. Bangalore walked up behind them and smirked. “You’re slacking, Mirage,” she said as she finished the downed enemy.

“Sorry, I’ve just…” Mirage shrugged and got up from his hiding spot. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

Wattson approached the two, carrying a level two shield. She handed it to Bangalore, for she already had her own. “Sorry, Elliott. Er, I mean Mirage. There were only two.”

Mirage pulled out his map. _That’s where I want to go,_ he thought to himself as he spotted the location. “Alright, I’m gonna go loot towards Bunker.”

Bangalore gave him a strange look, then shrugged. “We’ll be heading towards Skull Town.”

“I’ll catch up to you guys.”

After a brisk farewell, Mirage was on his way towards Bunker, while Wattson and Bangalore began their trek to Skull Town.

The sand gathered into his boots as he walked across the landscape. He didn’t have time to stop and shake out the sand. Plus, that would be a bit embarrassing to do on live television. Although the cameras were probably focused on the Kill Leader, a Legend Elliott did not know the name of.

The worn-down buildings appeared in the distance. Elliott picked up his pace and sent a decoy out ahead of him to make sure no enemies were also looting there. When his decoy disappeared without being shot down, he continued.

 _They must have remade this into some kind of military town._ Elliott looked at the signs that hung on many of the exteriors of the houses. They were too deteriorated for him to be able to read any of the text.

Taking in a deep breath, he walked towards the closest house and brushed his hand along the side.

He wasn’t a very spiritually aware person, but something seemed off. Even before he knew the incident that occurred here, it still was an eerie place. The abandoned buildings covered in sand, the ripped tarps above the walkways, the damaged signs. He did not like coming here during normal Games. Often, he completely avoided the place.

Walking into a house, Elliott eyed the graffiti on the walls. Various vulgar words and symbols dotted the interior. He wondered if Legends were the ones who came in and drew that stuff. His question was answered when he saw 'PLUS ULTRA' written out with neon green spray paint.

What sounded like a gust of wind blew through the small town. Mirage turned around towards the exit of the building and nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight in front of him. He hadn't heard them approach.

“I suspected you would come here.”

Elliott could barely keep from running towards them. “Houndy,” he said. “I’ve been looking for you.”


	11. The Reason We Are Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> here's another chapter... nearing the end.  
> thank you for reading and sticking around :)

“I’ve been looking for you.” Elliott let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding in.

Bloodhound remained motionless. “I assumed you were.”

“Houndy,” Elliott walked towards them with his arms raised. “Why didn’t you answer any of my calls or texts? You left me alone at our home.”

“In _my_ home, actually.” They kept their head up, the eyes of their mask showing no emotion. They crossed their arms to signal to him that they did not want him to touch them.

Elliott was a bit taken aback by the hostile tone in their voice. “Sweetheart?” He stopped a few feet in front of them.

They did not respond to the pet name.

“Did I make you mad by leaving?” Elliott looked down at his shoes. “I had to, honey. I had to go see my mom as soon as possible. I found… I found out what happened to my brothers.”

Bloodhound’s teeth clenched together silently.

“I found out what finally happened to them. They were killed. The military didn’t even think to tell my family the truth. The reports were released after years of me and my mother wondering what the hell happened to my brothers,” Elliott said. “I had to go see my mom as soon as I could. You understand.”

“Understand exactly what, Elliott?” Bloodhound’s voice began to get lower. Artur raised his wings and took off towards the window with a caw.

Elliott bit his lip. Now he was getting pissed. Why were they so mad at him? They understood the feeling. They understood the agony of losing people. Why were they mad that he went to visit his mother without telling them?

“Well, sorry Bloth, but I don’t think you need to know where I am at any given mome-”

“Do not call me that.”

“Huh?” Elliott’s body began to tense up. “Call you what? 'Bloth'?”

“Do not call me that _name_.” Bloodhound began to step towards him but turned away instead. They walked towards the exit of the abandoned building.

Hearing the sharp bite of their words made him jump. “I don’t want to fight with you! Why are you so mad? I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry I didn’t tell you where I was going. But I seriously didn’t think you had to be so obsessed with me that you get all whiny when you don’t know exactly what’s going on with everything in your secluded little life,” said Elliott.

“Obsessed? Really, Elliott, you are the whiny little brat. Everything has to be about you, whether or not you are bored, whether or not you are getting enough attention. Do not tell me I am obsessed. I was doing fine without you.”

A sharp pain hit Elliott in the gut. “I’m sorry.”

“No, you are not.” Bloodhound walked out of the building and waited outside of the door. This was ridiculous. The ignorance Elliott had. Of course, he had not put two and two together.

What was the point? He was a clumsy, self-centered boy who just liked the attention that they had given him. They had a perfectly comfortable, secluded life before the Gods decided to introduce them and remind them of their past, especially after they were seriously considering _marrying him._ Why had they done that? Was hurting them a big, funny joke?

“I’m sorry.” Elliott stood at the doorway.

They became increasingly aware of the hunting knife on their hip.

“Bloth, I am sorry. I don’t wanna fi-”

“When do you ever shut up?!” Bloodhound reached and grabbed at Elliott’s upper arm.

Elliott tried to jump back from them, but their grip was too strong. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

“No, Eli… Elliott. Are you that dense?” Bloodhound shoved Elliott to the side. He tripped and fell to the ground, his breath knocked out of him.

He stared up at Bloodhound. They stood with their arms crossed, their mask concealing their facial expression as they looked down at him.

“What do you mean, ‘dense’? What’re you talking about,” he said.

“Elliott!” Bloodhound began to turn away, then looked at him again. “Don’t you realize? Your… your brothers. The place they went to.” They raised a hand to their forehead. A wave of nausea hit them and they began to sweat quite heavily under the mask. It wasn’t wise to get this overworked while in their Game gear in the sweltering desert.

“They died here. In this spot.” He tried to lift himself off the ground, but Bloodhound quickly shoved him back down, their knees pressing against his chest and his arm.

“Stop, stop, stop! That hurts!” Elliott tried to push Bloodhound off, but they stayed firm. “I’m sorry,” he whimpered.

They grabbed their hunting knife and swiftly brought it to his throat. Elliott grabbed at their wrist with his free hand to hold the knife away, but they were incredibly strong.

“You’re fucking insane, Bloodhound! What are you doing?!” His voice was wavering due to the increasing pressure of their knife getting closer to his throat and their knee pressing down on his chest.

“Your brothers,” they began. “My tribe, my family, my home. My entire life, all destroyed because of your greedy, murderous brothers.”

“Huh?” Elliott squinted up at them. “You’re telling me… The tribe that killed them was your own?”

Bloodhound growled, “You mean the tribe that got killed because of your silly little military. My tribe did not want to fight. They knew what your soldiers would do to them even if they did not fight. You entered our lands, ‘King’s Canyon’ as you call it now, where we had been for generations, and built your base. You decided that us being there was a great hassle and _slátra_ us.”

Elliott stared at Bloodhound, speechless.

“Do you know what happened to me after that?” Bloodhound asked, not expecting an answer. “I had to watch my own parents and tribe be massacred. I would have gotten killed myself if I did not hide. I was just a child, I could not help my family. For years, I wandered the Canyon alone, scared, and praying to Gods that decided that my tribe should be punished.” They thrust their hand with the weapon closer to his throat, and he let out a cry.

“I’m sorry, Houndy.” Elliott attempted to take deep breaths. “Let me help y-”

They continued. “I was luckily gifted by the cursed Gods with hunting skills. I could survive on my own. But do you know what happened next, after all my suffering? They turned the land where my ancestors had thrived into an arena for a _bloodsport_! Our sacred sites, our hunting grounds, our home. I had no other choice except to join the Games. Where else could I go? I knew I was good at mercilessly tracking others. I could earn money, and hide out in a nice house with Artur. Live the rest of my days alone, never with another person, praying to Gods that decided our tribe needed to be punished. That _I_ needed to be punished.”

Elliott knew it was smart to keep quiet and let them talk. The hot sand gathered around his neck and was getting in his hair. _Oh, it’s gonna take forever to fix my hair_ , Elliott would have thought in a normal situation.

“The only thing I had with me when I was alone were the Gods. I had relied on them all my life, so who was I to abandon them? But I never… I never understood,” they muttered. “What had my family done to anger them? Why was I allowed to live, when I did nothing to help my tribe in the end?” Bloodhound gritted their teeth and shut their eyes tightly, but that did not stop the tears.

“They sent you to me. Specifically, they told me to stay by your side. And I trusted them once again. Why, Elliott?” They couldn’t keep their voice from wavering.

“Why did it have to be you?”

Elliott felt his heart ache. He wanted to take them in his arms, console them, protect them from the terrible world and their terribly mean Gods. “I’m sorry,” he repeated once again, yet he meant it each time.

“I really… I really thought that you were the one. I have never been able to fully trust anyone but you,” they sobbed out. “Why would they send you to pain me again? Why does the only person I love have to be just a… a _helvítis bjáni_ sent by the Gods to remind me of their cruel punishment?”

Elliott was beginning to tire from holding the knife away from his throat. “Is that all you think I am?”

“Why else would they make the effort to deliver you…?” They seemed to not hear Elliott's questions or apologies.

“Listen, Bloodhound. I’m not a believer in spiritual stuff at all. I am deeply sorry for what happened to you. I really am sorry.” He attempted to take breaths between each sentence. “But I wasn’t at all involved with that. When it happened, I was probably sitting at home playing video games or some dumb shit. I know you’re mad.” Elliott felt his heart break as he heard a small sniff come from under the mask. “I’m sorry. Your family didn’t deserve that. They didn’t deserve any of it. They didn't have to kill your tribe. But, honey, I don’t want to be a burden to you, sent by your Gods or whatever to make you feel bad... I really do care about you.”

Bloodhound took deep breaths and slowly raised the knife away from Elliott. “Why did they have to make me remember?”

“I don’t know.” Elliott did not want to be disrespectful and say, ‘darling, it’s just a coincidence. Your Gods didn’t make us meet and fall in love only for you to be reminded of how shitty your life was.’ “Maybe as… a way to move on?”

Bloodhound stayed silent. They pondered the idea that Elliott was sent to help Bloodhound be relieved of the past. It wasn’t completely ridiculous…

In all honesty, the past few days that Bloodhound spent alone and wandering the Outlands were therapeutic. They could be alone with their thoughts. They could release their anger. They could cry, beg, yell, scream, and talk to the Gods. Yes, they missed Elliott, but they could be alone and embrace their feelings rather than bottling it up like all those years ago.

He had helped them open up emotionally in ways they never had before. He was understanding, compassionate, and a good listener. Bloodhound appreciated his kindness greatly.

“Elliott?” Bloodhound slowly lifted their weight off him and sat next to him.

Elliott took a deep breath now that his chest wasn’t being compressed. He shook out his arm, which was being stabbed with pins and needles due to lack of blood flow. “Yes, Bloodhound?”

They shrugged. “I am sorry,” they said hesitantly. Apologies were hard for them, but Elliott deserved to hear it.

Elliott stayed silent for a moment and Bloodhound leaned over him to make sure he hadn’t suddenly passed out, or even died.

“I should not have taken it out on you… For the past few days, I have been dealing with my emotions. I am so used to hiding them, that they suddenly came out and…” Bloodhound saw the red mark from their knee on Elliott’s arm. They began to feel even more guilty. They got up and walked into the nearby building for cover.

“Bloodhound?” Elliott jumped up with shaky legs and followed them in. He watched from the doorway as they removed their mask and rubbed their eyes. “Bloth?”

Bloth turned and stared at him with glassy eyes. Their hair was a mess and their face was puffy and red, but Elliott’s breath was still taken away at the sight of them.

“It’s alright.” He approached them, yet kept his distance. He held his arms up and invited them in for a hug if they accepted it. He grunted as they threw themselves into his arms. Their head rested against his shoulder and they took deep breaths.

“I am sorry, Eli,” they whispered. “Please, I cannot beg you enough to forgive me. What I did was foolish and dangerous, and I do not know what I would do if I actually hurt you.”

“It’s okay.” Elliott brushed his fingers through their hair. “I know you were mad.” He flexed his arm and winced as the tingling feeling remained.

That was another one of his beautiful traits: understanding.

They both stood together for a while. Elliott missed their scent and took deep breaths to keep it in his mind. He missed them and was more than happy that they were back.

“Mirage? Where are you?” A voice spoke into his earpiece.

Elliott jumped and looked around for the source, then realized it was in his own ear. “Er, yes?”

Bloodhound looked up at him and tightened their arms around him.

“Yeah, no. I’m still looting. Actually, um, you guys go on ahead. I think I’m going to… quit?” Elliott winced at his excuse. “Okay. Sorry. I know. Good luck, guys.”

“What are you doing?” Bloodhound asked.

After shutting off his earpiece, Elliott kissed the top of their head. “I figured we could just make our own squad and beat everyone’s asses.”

“Eli, I never registered for this Game. I snuck into here.”

“Okay, and?”

“I could get us both in trouble.”

“It’s alright,” Elliott said. “We’ll be fine.”

Bloodhound backed away from him reluctantly. “Did you want to say anything to your... brothers... while you are here?”

“Actually, I think I will,” Elliott replied.

Bloodhound placed a hand on his shoulder for a moment, then put on their mask and left the building. After they walked out of the door, he heard them say something to Artur in their foreign language, which he understood nothing of. “ _Barnið fuglinn minn, það klaufalegt, elskulegur maður er kominn aftur._ ” The lilting of their voice made his heart flutter every time.

Elliott took in a deep breath.

“So, um…” He ran his fingers through his curly hair. “I mean, I hope you’re listening. Or like this goes out into the universe or something. I miss you. Mom misses you.”

Shrugging, Elliott looked to make sure Bloodhound wasn’t watching. He wiped at something in his eyes. “Life’s been hard, to be honest. I wasn’t brave or strong enough to be the man of the house so soon, and it took a while for me to get used to it. I don’t think I’m even used to it yet. I really look up to you guys, with how you knew exactly what you wanted in life. You joined the army with no worries at all, and I wish I could be as confident as you. I don’t even know what I’m doing in my life. I’m not the kind of person to be in the military. I can’t stay at home and work in the shop. Bartending is fun, but sometimes I need more excitement in my life. The Games are… pretty entertaining actually. But I can’t do the Games forever. I don’t know what to do with my life.

“Am I rushing in? With Bloodhound, I mean. I believe that they are the one. They might say no to me. Reject me. Get bored of me. I just don’t know if I’m good enough, you know? And you guys picked up hotties all the time. I’m just the baby brother. Yeah, I’ve got some of your guys’ looks, but I’m still the little bro. My most redeeming trait is that I can talk for hours on end, and my hair is pretty good too. But I’m just a little dork who still lived with his mom up until a few months ago...”

No response, although he wasn’t expecting one.

“It feels good to let this all out.” Elliott waved awkwardly to the ceiling. “Um… smell you later. Jon, Riley, Jack… I miss you guys,” he said. He glanced back one last time before he walked out. 

“Ready?” Bloodhound nodded their head to him.

He flashed a weak smile at them. “More than I’ll ever be.”


	12. That You're the Best Thing I Could Ever Ask For

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading, once again.  
> a fighting chapter again! they're very fun to write.  
> i hope you enjoy, and continue to keep reading.  
> thank you : )

Mirage watched as Bloodhound quickly acquired guns, ammo, and shields from unlooted buildings and lootboxes scattered around. He donated a few of his syringes to them.

“Ah, there it is,” Bloodhound said suddenly.

“Huh?” Mirage turned to where they were looking and watched as a flying drone came closer and directed its camera lens at them.

On a banner across the distance, he watched as the two of them appeared in the frame. He waved at the drone. The newscasters were probably pointing out Bloodhound’s unplanned appearance and the famous duo being back in action.

Bloodhound huffed at Mirage’s willingness to comply with the media and pulled out their map to plan where to go. “The Ring is coming in towards Bunker.”

“Then let’s go!” Mirage crossed his fingers that the two of them would not encounter Wattson and Bangalore. He wouldn’t have the heart, or the guts, to fight them right after abandoning them.

They walked along the sand dunes. Bloodhound glanced at Mirage now and then, still feeling guilty for lashing out at him. “Elliott, dear,” they began. “I am sor-”

A gunshot barely missed them. It landed in the sand silently, sending up a cloud of dust.

Artur let out a squeak and flew for cover. Mirage grabbed Bloodhound’s wrist and pulled them behind the cover of a building. “Houndy, I said it’s alright.” He peeked around the corner and began to shoot at a Legend hiding out behind the tall walls of Bunker.

He quickly knocked them down and looked around for their teammate.

Sensing their footsteps, Bloodhound quickly faced the grouping of buildings nearby them and used their ability. A red outline was crouched behind the walls, and Mirage acted spontaneously. He ran inside the building and fired at the other squad member, who was probably planning on ambushing Mirage and Bloodhound while their teammate fired at them.

Bloodhound watched the counter of Legends still alive slowly trickle down closer to the single digits. “Eleven left,” they whispered.

Mirage ducked down by them once more. He was already at two kills. Despite him being absolutely terrible at the beginning of the Game, he was doing great now that Bloodhound was by his side again. They must have been good luck to him, he believed. He reached over and placed a small kiss on the front of their mask, comparable to how someone would kiss their good luck charm.

Bloodhound habitually waved away the affection. “Focus, you… _dork_.”

“'Dork'? Not gonna call me some foreign words?”

The duo could see the Ring approaching, and made their way to the ledge outside Bunker, right on the edge of the Ring.

The only gun Bloodhound was able to grab from their quick looting session was a Longbow, and they put it to good use. They looked out into the deadly Ring for any stragglers. Artur perched on their shoulder and chirped, for he had seen movement.

They got the hint and spotted Octane running, using his Stim to outrun his teammates Gibraltar and a lesser-known Legend.

Bloodhound silently pointed them out to Mirage and aimed. They fired a couple of headshots to Gibraltar before he was downed, but had a bit of difficulty focusing their crosshair on the swift Octane.

Mirage sent out his decoy and the Legend stopped to shoot at it, giving Bloodhound a chance to snipe them down.

Jumping off the ledge, Mirage intercepted Octane just as he reached the inside of the Ring. With him already being low health from the Ring, he went down easily and let out a few swears directed at Mirage.

“Alright! Already seven people left, including us. A little bit scary, huh?” Mirage couldn’t help but grin at his three kills. Naturally, the experienced Bloodhound already had two kills of their own.

“I think I hear more _óvinir_ inside of Bunker.” Bloodhound hesitated to use their ability and give away their position.

“Does that mean ‘bad guys’?” Mirage asked.

Bloodhound smiled gently. “Close enough.” They got down from the ledge and looted Octane’s box. They got an R-301, a blue body shield, and some grenades. They then stood next to Mirage near the entrance of Bunker. The Ring surrounded them, and there was no other way to go except inside.

They weren’t wrong about another squad being close by. The sounds of footsteps and people communicating could be heard inside Bunker.

Mirage looked to Bloodhound and couldn’t help but smile. He missed their presence, especially in the Games. He got to see the fierce, bloodthirsty side of them that was replaced by a cuddly, sweet Bloodhound when they were alone. In all honesty, their merciless attitude gave him goosebumps and a stomach full of butterflies.

“Do not be distracted, _elskan_.” Bloodhound opened the door and threw a grenade in, then shut the door again. Legends inside yelled to each other, then went quiet. They were probably hiding and waiting to attack whoever wandered in.

“My time to shine,” Mirage whispered. He opened the door and sent a decoy in, who was filled with holes faster than you could say "pork chop".

Bloodhound nodded and the two of them ran in. Mirage used his ultimate and distracted them while his partner sprayed the enemies with gunfire. Mirage sneaked behind the squad and got the element of surprise.

What he did not realize, though, was that another squad was clamoring into Bunker after hearing all the commotion. Bullets flew by Mirage’s head, and he ducked into one of the side rooms.

He was dangerously close to being knocked down. His shields were gone, and he felt a sharp pain on his shoulder. No one had followed him into the room, and he quickly used up his one shield cell and his syringes.

Mirage heard Bloodhound use their ultimate. He couldn’t tell how they were holding up. _I need to get back out there and help them_.

A door next to Mirage slammed open after a few moments and Bloodhound dived in. Mirage nearly jumped out of his skin. “You scared me, baby!”

“Silence. They are fighting each other.” Bloodhound used a shield battery and tossed a few cells to Mirage. “ _Kæru_ ,” they added.

“Say that again.”

“ _Kæru_.” Their tongue rolled on the ‘r’.

Mirage got a shiver up his body. He missed them. He missed their little actions that caused his heart to swell, their beautiful voice, their touch, their body that was the perfect size and shape for hugging, their calm demeanor and soothing whispers, their-

An enemy hit the wall outside of the room. Mirage pulled out his gun. “Let’s get them, Houndy,” he said.

Bloodhound nodded and the two of them stood by the door, waiting for a good chance to strike. When they couldn’t hear any more movement in the hallway, Bloodhound tapped a finger against the side of their head and bodies suddenly became visible, their silhouettes red.

Mirage wanted to ask how exactly they did that, and how he could also see the enemies through the walls as if he were wearing their mask, but he didn’t have time. Bloodhound was rushing out of the room and firing at the healing enemies. Mirage followed behind them and threw a grenade to help lower their shields. Soon, the team was completely wiped.

Bloodhound looted a box and picked up a level three shield. Mirage found his own and restocked his ammo and syringes.

Artur flew down from a ledge and perched on Mirage’s shoulder. He was making small chirping noises in his ear and pulling at his curls.

“Hey! What’s he doing?” Mirage held a hand up to cover his gorgeous, luxurious hair.

Bloodhound quickly stood up. “He heard something.”

A door slammed closed from the other end of the Bunker. Mirage’s head whipped around and stared at the top of the staircase. “Another squad,” he whispered.

Bloodhound let out a 'tsk'. “Send one of your decoys up there. I do not have my ultimate yet.”

As Mirage sent out his decoy, an arc star was thrown down at them. Bloodhound and Artur quickly ducked out of range, but Mirage was caught in the electric trap of the star. He let out a yell as he tried to hold himself steady. The electricity pulsed through his nerves in a rather uncomfortable way, and his shields were destroyed. Another star was thrown down, and it landed on the wall next to him.

“What are you doing!” Bloodhound ran to shove Mirage out of the way before the next arc star set off.

“Sorry, Bloodhound, I can’t move that easily when my whole body is getting tased!” Mirage winced as his elbow hit the floor hard. “Thanks for moving m-”

Bloodhound threw a hand over his mouth and dragged him behind the corner. “Get up,” they snapped.

Mirage pouted and sent out another decoy around the corner. The enemies shot it down, and their location at the top of the stairs was revealed.

“Should we run?” Mirage hesitantly grabbed a shield battery and restored his shields.

“That is not very honorable. And, anyway, they are one of the last squads left.” Bloodhound quickly snatched an ultimate accelerator from a nearby lootbox and used it. Their fingers drummed on their wrist impatiently. “Five more seconds. Buy me some time.”

Mirage looked around in his bag. The enemies would come running down soon. He grabbed a grenade and threw it as far as he could. No damage was done, but at least the enemies would be ducking away from the explosion.

Bloodhound activated their ultimate, the eyes of their mask glowing red.

Mirage felt a sliver of the same fear he felt when he first met them. “I’ll be right behind you,” he said.

“Ah, no,” Bloodhound muttered before running off. “Cover me from behind. The other squad is coming.”

Mirage turned and glanced at the heavy metal door. He wouldn’t be very well-covered if the enemies decided to run in.

Bloodhound was off, ducking in between the rooms and doors for cover. A Legend peeked over the staircase, and Bloodhound took the chance to land a few shots. “I’m low!” They heard the enemy exclaim.

Another female Legend used her ability to try and stun Bloodhound. They ducked for cover before the ability could hit them. A more reckless enemy ran down the stairs towards them, and they threw an arc star and stunned him, then knocked him down with their R-301.

Mirage watched the upper level and shot when an enemy peeked their head over. He managed to knock down one of them, but the last Legend in the squad was still up there, attacking Bloodhound.

“In here. The last two squads will charge in. Let’s heal,” a voice spoke as the Bunker doors behind Mirage opened.

Mirage turned quickly, but the other squad reacted faster. They shot at Mirage, and he was able to get one of them very low but got himself knocked down.

He heard Bloodhound call his name from down the hallway before he was shot once again. Everything went dark.

 

\---

 

“Bloth!” Elliott sat up and looked around.

The walls were a clean white, and everything smelled a bit like chemicals. He was sitting on a small bed, in the hoodie and sweatpants he was in before the Apex Game. There was a bandage on his cheek and his arm.

A woman was placing a glass of water on the table beside him. “You’re already awake? You were eliminated only a little bit ago.”

“Where am I?” Elliott glanced up at the television mounted on the wall opposite of him. It was showing the Game, and Elliott could see the squad that eliminated him fighting with the pesky Legend hiding at the top of the stairs. Bloodhound was nowhere in sight.

“You were eliminated. It’s alright, Bloodhound is still fighting.” The nurse leaned against the wall and stared at the TV. “You both were crazy out there. I don’t know how you Legends do it.”

Elliott nodded but kept his eyes glued to the Apex Game. One of the Legends from the duo squad that defeated him was knocked down, but the surviving enemy finished the Legend on the stairs. She looked around, making sure there weren’t any enemies close by. Hesitantly, she began to heal her squadmate.

Bloodhound opened the door and shot at the enemies without haste, and once again, they were victorious. They turned to look at the broadcasting drone, and with a slight awkwardness, formed a peace sign with their fingers.

“Houndy, Houndy, Houndy!” Elliott couldn’t hold back his grin as Bloodhound copied his winning pose.

The newscasters’ voices came from the speakers. “Once again, a win from the terrifying Bloodhound! Their teammate, Mirage, was eliminated in the final moments, but could this be a small tribute to him?”

The nurse was smiling as well and turned to look at Elliott. “Bloodhound is fascinating. Are they always a scary hunter, just like in the Games?”

Elliott continued to watch as Artur flew down and perched on Bloodhound's shoulder. They began to leave Bunker and head for the Drop Ship. “They’re the best thing I could ever ask for,” he said.


	13. What It Means to Be Loved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the final chapter... :(  
> i want to say thank you to every single reader and every single comment. just knowing that there's other people out there that feel the same about mirage and bloodhound and miragehound in general is amazing.  
> i had such fun writing this story, and i can't believe it's over.  
> thank you so much for reading.
> 
> i'm planning on releasing one more short chapter... soon.  
> thank you!

“Elliott, my darling,” they placed their hands on his cheeks and kissed him. “I should have let you come with me. I should not have let you stay behind.”

Elliott tried to keep a dejected face. The sudden flurry of apologetic kisses from Bloodhound wasn’t unwelcome by any means, but it was adorable and made Elliott want to tackle them down and cuddle them right there in the Apex Headquarters hallway. They had led him there to apologize to him right after the Game, and hoped no one would wander by to see them embracing.

He figured if he continued to have an upset look on his face, then they would keep kissing him. 

“It’s fine…” Elliott sighed and lowered his eyes dramatically.   


Bloodhound pushed their mask back up after it began to slip over their forehead. They nestled their face into the crook of his neck. “It is not fine.” Their voice was muffled. “Being eliminated is frightening, and… it is not virtuous to let your companions fall while you succeed.”

Placing a hand under their chin, Elliott lifted their head so that he could look into their eyes. Their dark brown hues held a hint of sorrow, and Elliott felt his heart squeeze regretfully.

“I’m sorry, honeybun. I’m just messing with you.” He pulled their body close to his and hugged them tightly. “And, anyway, you won and got a really cool… um… what did you ask for again?”

“A bookend,” they said simply.

Elliott laughed a bit. “You didn’t want money or a cool car or something?”

Bloodhound stepped back and slipped their mask on. “I have enough money, and I have no interest in a vehicle. Walking is much more healthy.”

Smirking, Elliott watched as Bloodhound walked a bit down the hallway, then turn to look at him. “Let us go,  _ elskaðir, _ ” they said.

Everything was back to normal. He had the love of his life by his side again, and he couldn’t imagine a better life than one spent with Bloodhound in their cozy little house and playing in the occasional Apex Game. Maybe, in the future, a family would be in the picture. Or at least a pet dog.

He followed them down the hallway and out of the Apex Headquarters.

Once they got outside of the building, Bloodhound raised their arm high in the air and Artur climbed onto their gloved hand. He began to flex his wings. “Artur, home,” Bloodhound said.

Artur chirped and took off as fast as he could, testing his speed as he flew.

Elliott watched as Artur quickly disappeared over the horizon towards their house. “He’s smart as hell,” he said bluntly.

Sighing, Bloodhound lowered their arm. “What would you like to do now?”

Elliott checked the time. It was already getting late. “How about a drink?”

 

 

Inside Elliott’s bar, Legends and normal customers packed the tables. Him and Bloodhound were greeted with cheers when they entered, and Elliott yelled out, “drinks on me!”

Deciding to let the decoys and other employees handle the bar tonight, he and Bloodhound approached a table near the back. The soft orange tint of the light overhead gave Bloodhound a nostalgic feeling.

They looked to Elliott and remembered the first night they hung out, right in this bar. He was new, nervous, and the most handsome man they had ever seen, even after he had groveled at their feet out of fear during the Game.

A decoy came over and handed the two their drinks of choice. Elliott gave it a fist bump and took a sip from the glass. Bloodhound was about to pull their straw from their pocket, then realized there was already a straw in their drink.

Elliott gently smiled at them, and they smiled back under their mask gratefully.

The two of them sat in silence for a bit, enjoying the atmosphere and their drinks. Elliott was being awfully quiet. It was unusual. He had a look on his face as if his head was in the clouds.

“Eli?” Bloodhound watched him slowly come back to reality. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “Just thinking.”

“About what?”

“You.”

Bloodhound scowled a bit under their mask.  _ I am right here! You do not have to think about me, you can talk to me right now. Hold my hand, flirt with me, make suggestive remarks, love me. _

They immediately felt guilty for their thoughts. They didn’t want to be too pushy with him. They wouldn’t be able to tease him if he knew how desperately they wanted him.

Yawning, Bloodhound realized how fatigued they were after such an intense Game. Their shoulders ached and they must have pulled their leg muscle in the final fight in Bunker. “Elliott,” they muttered.

“Mhm, baby?” Elliott had his head resting on his hand.

They shut their eyes. “I want to go home and… cuddle.”

Elliott jumped up once he heard the word ‘cuddle’. “I’ll carry you home.”

“Ah, no, that is alright. At least, until we are not surrounded by all these people.”

 

 

The moon shone bright outside, and the light reflected off of the eyes of Bloodhound’s mask. Elliott wanted more than anything to take their mask off and see their dark skin and crimson hair under the moonlight.

Uncharacteristically, they raised their arms and threw them over Elliott’s shoulders. “Carry me,” they whispered.

Elliott turned around and squatted so he could piggyback them. When he felt them rest their head on his shoulder, he stood up carefully and began the walk home.

God, he loved them. Every single day, they surprised him with something new. Every day was a patient wait to see how they would open up to him. In a poetic sort of way, they reminded him of a flower bud that had not yet shown its contents. He thought about how his mom would always complain when a random flower that she had not planted would sprout in her garden. But he was glad that Bloth had shown up in his life. That they had begun to grow and thrive in his presence.

He could hear their breathing get slower as they began to doze off on his back. He wanted to bring them home, tuck them into bed, cuddle up beside them, wake up early the next morning, and make them the best breakfast they would ever have.

After a nice big breakfast, he could go out and… yes, that’s what he would do. He had just gotten a large sum from the Apex victory, so it wouldn’t be too much of a hassle.

Just thinking about the idea made his palms sweat and legs weak, so he stopped for a second as to not disturb the napping Bloodhound on his back.

Once he regained his composure, he continued the trek home.

 

 

They awoke when Elliott gently placed them on the bed. Sleepily, they removed their mask and placed in on the night table. “Cuddle,” they muttered as they laid back down.

Elliott chuckled at their childish personality when they were weary. They were much more vocal about their wants and a lot more affectionate.

He slipped into bed beside Bloth and pulled the comforter over them. He kissed their forehead and watched lovingly as they struggled to keep their eyes awake.

“Elliott,” they said. “I…”   


Tucking a strand of hair behind their ear, Elliott smiled gently. “You’re tired, sweetheart. Try to sleep.”   


But Bloth couldn’t just fall asleep. Their heart was squeezing and straining against their chest as Elliott slowly traced a scar on their cheek. They bit their lip to keep a yawn from escaping and ruining this tender moment. What was happening? Why was their stomach twisting, their head spinning, their cheeks tingling?

“Houndy, I love you.” Elliott’s handsome, tender eyes searched their face.

Bloth opened their mouth to respond, then shut it quickly. The scar on his cheek, the split in his eyebrow, the messy heap of hair, his light stubble…

Gods, how much they wanted to kiss him endlessly, feel his touch, feel his body on top of theirs… His warm breath against their neck as he moved his hand across their supple skin.

“I love you,” they replied simply.

Their own wants would have to wait. What would Elliott say if he had been able to see their fantasy? Turn away from them? Sleep in his own bed? Finally realize that they were way too bipolar for him, with being closed off one minute and begging for him to take them the next?

Elliott covered his mouth as he yawned. “Let’s sleep, baby.”

Slowly, Bloth leaned in for a small, light kiss. They focused solely on the feeling of his warmth next to them, the touch of his delicate lips against their own, the light breaths from his nose touching their upper lip.

How could they have ever thought about leaving him forever?

Bloth curled up even closer to Elliott, and rested their head in the crook of his neck. “Goodnight,  _ ástin í lífi mínu. _ ”

Elliott pulled them closer, his lips pressing against the top of their head. “Goodnight, baby.”

 

\---

 

After stretching, Elliott reached to embrace his partner. “Baby, _ gooooooood _ morning!” But there was no one else in the bed with him.

His gut twisted instantaneously.  _ No, no, no. They left again. _ He jumped out of bed, his heart speeding up.

When he entered the living room, he let out a great sigh. A note was lying on the table. Artur was cooing in his nest, still fast asleep.

The note was small and simple. “ _ Went out, my beloved. I will be back soon. I love you. _ ”

Elliott frowned a bit. He wanted to spend time with them. Today felt like a lazy day. A day for cuddling and sleeping with his sweetheart. He was going to make them a great, delicious breakfast and while they were full and energised, they would drag him back to bed. “Elliott, you are such a good cook,” they would murmur lustfully to him. “I want to make you mine, kiss you until night falls and then we can have the most passionate, intense-”

No, he wouldn’t be able to anyways. He had his own task to do that day.

He went to his bedroom and got dressed. He put on a clean t-shirt and some jeans. It wouldn’t feel right to go out in sweatpants for this errand.

Crossing his fingers, he hoped he would not run into Bloth while he was out. He wrote underneath Bloth’s words on the note: “ _ Went out somewhere, too. I’ll be back soon baby.” _

 

 

Elliott looked up at the shop in front of him. He had closely followed the directions on the holopad, and was glad to find he didn’t get lost on the way.

The front of the shop was simple. There were potted plants outside, and the exterior was painted a gentle, woody brown. Not what he was expecting for the expensive merchandise they sold inside.

He walked into the store, and waved at the person behind the counter. He smiled at him and walked out from behind the counter to meet him.

“Oh! You’re one of those Legends, aren’t you?” The shop owner asked.

“Yeah. I’m Mirage. Or, Elliott is my real name.” Elliott tried not to stutter due to his nerves. “Um, I came looking for… uh…”

“A ring, I suppose?” The man raised an eyebrow at Elliott. “Well, here. Come take a look at some of the displays and I’ll help you get an idea of what would be good.”

Grateful that he would have some help picking one out, Elliott sighed. “Thank you.”

 

 

He gingerly held the box in his hands. A flurry of questions ran through his head.  _ When should I do it? Where should I do it? What should I say? Does Bloth even feel that way towards me? _

Nervously, he decided to call a cab for himself rather than risk anything happening on the walk home. He gripped the box tightly in his hand as he waited for his ride.

 

\---

 

Bloodhound placed the note back down onto the table. This was a bit problematic. They figured they would just do it as soon as they got back home. They hoped Elliott would arrive soon.

Artur woke up and flexed his wings to stretch. Bloth smiled up at him. “I am… nervous, Artur.”

The raven seemed to chuckle at them.

They went to the couch and sat down, grabbing a novel from the coffee table. Immersing themself into a book was the only thing that could keep their nerves down.

 

 

Not long later, Elliott opened the door quickly and shut it loudly behind him. Bloth watched him slink into the living room and jump when he saw them. They unconsciously moved a hand to cover their pocket.

They set their book down and held their arms out for a hug. “Hello, dear.”   


Elliott’s eyes widened and he held his hands behind his back. “Hello, honey bun.”

“What are you hiding?” They asked bluntly, a bit hurt that he had not ran into their embrace.

Elliott shrugged. “Nothing.”

Getting up, Bloth walked over and stared up at him. They slowly raised their arms to reach around him and grasp the secret behind his back. He turned his body so they couldn’t reach it.

“Tell me,” they whispered, and brought their body closer to his. They pressed their hips against him, and Elliott let out a small gasp.

“Houndy,” he panted out their name. “I, uh…”

“Tell me.” Bloth suddenly grasped for the item in Elliott’s hands, but he ducked away. They glared at him playfully. They could tell something was eating at him. The secret in their own pocket was getting increasingly hotter, but that could’ve just been in their imagination.

Elliott felt his ears begin to heat up, and the room seemed to get smaller and harder to breathe in. “Bloodhound.”

“Why my nickname for the Games?” Bloth stepped away from him. Maybe he knew what they had in their pocket. Maybe he was scared of it and them, scared of the commitment that came with it.

“I love you,” he stuttered out.  _ Do it do it do it Elliott you dumbass they won’t leave you just ‘cuz of this. _

_ I don’t want to be rejected!  _ Elliott fought with himself.

_ Do it, wimp. _

He slowly moved his hands from behind his back. The box was sticking to his sweaty hands.  _ Gross. _ He swallowed the lump in his throat.

“Let’s get married?” His voice was at a higher pitch due to nerves. It was not exactly what he wanted to say when he proposed, but if he spoke anymore, he would turn into a big, sweaty, stuttering heap of emotions.

Bloth stared at him, their face remaining emotionless. Elliott slowly opened the box and inside was a small ring. It was gold simple. He knew Bloth would prefer an unadorned ring rather than a big, glitzy one.

After a moment of Bloth’s blank stare, Elliott began to become disheartened. “So… you can say no if you want but Bloth sweetie I love you I r- really do and I know it’s kinda sudden and a whole ton of stuff just happened but like I’m sorry and I feel so confident that I’m meant to be with y-”

“Elliott, dearest,” Bloth reached a hand up and placed it on Elliott’s shoulder. “I…”

Elliott watched as they reached a hand into their pocket and pulled out a small ring. It was black, with what looked like silver weavings as the pattern.

“I was going to propose to you, too.”   


Speechless, Elliott raised his eyebrows at them. “I, uh…” What could he say? His heart was beating in his throat, and his lungs seemed to be getting smaller by the minute.

“I want to marry you,” Bloth said, their voice quiet. “I want to be with you.”

“I love you.” Elliott placed the box on the table and embraced them. He bit his lip to keep from… crying? Yelling? Both gave him the same light, squeezing feeling in his chest.

Bloth, though, couldn’t keep their eyes from watering as they wrapped their arms around him. “I want to be with you forever, for as long as I live. I do not want anyone else except you.”

“I love you, Houndy.” Elliott felt a laugh rise up in his throat. “I really do.”

“I… I want a big family.” Bloth leaned back to look at Elliott’s face. “A dog. A few dogs. Kids. Anything, Elliott. I want to have a whole life with you.”

“A family.” Elliott’s cheeks began to hurt from smiling so much. His body felt light, as if he could fall over any minute. “God, I love you, Bloth.”

“I love you, Eli,” they smiled up at him.

They each placed each other’s rings on their fingers. Elliott watched as Bloth stared intently at it.

“D- do you like it? I mean, I didn’t think you would want one with a huge diamond or something. I could always go back and-”

“I love it so much.” They were smiling as they moved their hand to watch the light reflect off the jewelry. “I love you.”

 

 

Bloth let out a gasp as Elliott grazed his teeth against their neck. His warm chest pressed against theirs. Their clothes had been thrown hastily onto the ground.

Elliott pressed his hips against theirs and felt his face warm up as they arched their back at his touch. He could feel their heartbeat through their chest. Their delicate breaths quickened each time he nipped at their neck and collarbone.

He slowly lifted himself onto his elbows and gazed down at them, at their beautiful, ethereal body. The moonlight shone through the window and illuminated their tender features. He wanted it to never end. He wanted to stay there, with their dark hair and arcane eyes reflecting the light, forever.

They looked up at him with a hint of embarrassment in their eyes. “Please, Elliott,” they whispered. “I want you.”

Elliott felt a shiver go through his entire body at their plead. Without a pause, he leaned down and kissed them vehemently. He bucked his hips and felt their body tense up beneath him, a whine coming from their mouth between their kiss.

“I love you,” he muttered as he pulled away to catch his breath.

“I love you,” they replied heatedly.

 

\---

 

“Bloodhound!”

They turned and saw a news reporter waving at them, a camera and voice recorder in tow. They had an urge to ignore her and continue on their way, but reluctantly shoved the thought away.

“Yes?” Bloodhound stopped so she could catch up to them.

Her eyes widened. “Oh, uh, I didn’t expect you to actually stop.” She fiddled with the voice recorder. “I just have one question…”

Bloodhound nodded, and she continued, a bit flustered. “So Mirage has been seen with an engagement ring on his finger lately, and everyone is curious…”

“If it is me?” Bloodhound finished her question.

“Um, yes.” The news reporter smiled at them gently. They could tell she was a bit intimidated by their mask and Legend status.

Bloodhound could hear Elliott’s voice in their head. “I won’t tell anyone until you do,” Elliott had said to them that night after they both proposed. “I want you to be comfortable. I want you to let people know when you’re ready.”

They had come a long way. Not even a few months ago, they would have scoffed at the news reporter and turned away.

They would have shied away at the idea of being committed to Elliott. Thinking of him as just a pawn the Gods had sent. Revolted at the prospect of opening up emotionally to him. Letting him see their hands, their face, their body. Letting him know their past, their story.

But now, they were on their way home to waste the night away with Elliott. They would cuddle up close to him, kiss him without hesitation, and tell him that they loved him without waiting for him to say it first.

“Yes, we are engaged.” They knew the news reporter couldn’t see, but they smiled at her from under their mask.

She grinned at them. “Wait, really?” She coughed and regained her professional composure. “Congratulations!”

Bloodhound nodded. “Thank you,” they replied.

“I, um, I appreciate your answer!” She turned off her voice recorder.

Bloodhound waved goodbye to her as they continued their walk home.

They could not wait to get home and tell Elliott that he was free to run his mouth about their engagement as much as he wanted.

 

\---

 

Elliott gazed at Bloth as they read their book on the other end of the couch. He watched their eyes move along the words on the page, and the way they ran their finger along the top of the page before they turned it.

The quiet, relaxing evenings like this is what Elliott loved the most. Who would have ever thought the Apex Games would give him the best thing in his life?   


His heart felt lighter, calmer than it was just a few months ago. If Bloth hadn’t entered his life, he probably would have been spending another night alone, tending to his bar. He might have been flirting with anyone that would show up. Hell, he probably would have quit the Games and went back home to his mom, spending the rest of his days building holotech and achieving nothing.

He could be his playful, emotional self around them. He could say anything, make any kind of flirt, without being ridiculed or rejected. They let him say his feelings, let him be as open or as desperate as he wanted.

Elliott took in a deep breath and smiled as Bloth closed their book and turned to him. Their lovely face still made his heart swell whenever he saw it.

“You can tell people,” they said simply.

Elliott raised his eyebrows. “You mean it?”

“I want the world to know who I love.” Bloth scooted closer to Elliott on the couch and leaned against him. “I am not afraid of being open about my life you.”

“I love you,” Elliott ran his thumb across their cheek. “I can finally brag that my fiancé is more badass and beautiful than anyone else’s.”

Shaking their head, Bloth blushed. “Ah, Eli…”

“Yes, honey bun?” Elliott took their hand in his and ran his finger over their ring.

“I feel like…” They shrugged a bit. “I do not know how to say how I feel. But I really believe that the Gods sent you to teach me.”

“Teach you what?” Elliott asked.

“I feel that you have taught me how to love. How to love another, how to love myself. You have taught me what it means to be loved.”

Elliott leaned in and kissed the top of their head. Their natural, thick aroma relaxed him. He never wanted to forget this feeling. Their closeness, their scent, and their coy voice as they admitted their feelings.

He never wanted to experience this with anyone else.

“I feel the same.” He leaned back and admired their calm eyes. “You’ve taught me how to be my dorky, genuine self. That it’s okay to not be the life of the party constantly, and to just enjoy the simple things in life.”

Bloth bashfully smiled and leaned in to kiss him.

“I love you, Houndy,” Elliott whispered against their lips.

“And I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i made a miragehound playlist back when i was first beginning to write this. i've slowly added onto it, and i figured i'd share it just as an extra little thing for the story.
> 
> https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oirk6gxAFnbPkXEYhIkBs
> 
> :)


	14. The Importance of Family and Having a Pet Dog

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the final chapter : (  
> thank you for sticking around. it's been fun!  
> this fic has really helped me improve as a writer. i'm already rereading some older chapters and saying "wow i can't believe i didn't fix this part up..."  
> thank you again, although i say it a lot, i really mean it.  
> happy holidays : )

Bloodhound was quiet for most of the car ride.

“Houndy, she loves you! Don’t worry so much.” Elliott patted the top of their head. He couldn’t see because of the mask, but he knew their eyes were downturned and they were biting their lip in thought. They often did that same expression when reading, and it was absolutely adorable.

They shrugged. “I know. I am very lovable.”

“Yep, you are. And she’ll love the gifts you made her.” He gazed at the intricate weavings they were holding in their lap, alongside a candle. Their gift seemed a lot more intimate than the ones he had gotten her: a silver necklace and a rare figurine of “Mirage” that had not yet been released. It was a pretty necklace and she enjoyed getting his merch, but neither were personally handmade by him. “I just feel bad because I know you usually celebrate in your own way for this time of year and I’m making you go to my mom’s house.”

“I have been celebrating Yule, Eli. And I wanted to finally meet your mother.” Bloodhound turned to look out the window at the night sky. They hoped for snow. Even though it was a very hot planet in the summer months, it could get quite cold at the end of the year, but snow was rare. “Have you noticed me burning herbs, burning candles, and bringing more plants inside to decorate?”

Elliott unconsciously fidgeted with the engagement ring Bloodhound had given him. “I did notice! So that’s how you celebrate?”

“Well, there are other ways, but these are the most practical when you have someone else living with you.”

“Bloth, you can celebrate how you want. I don’t mind. I love it when you tell me about your religion and show me how you follow it, and stuff. I want you to be comfortable, be yourself.”

“You are sweet.” Bloth reached over and affectionately placed a hand on top of Elliott’s. “Many Christmas traditions were originally from Yule, too.”

“Like what?”

“The Christmas tree, feasting, and kissing under the mistletoe, for a few examples,” they said.

Elliott smiled. “You don’t need mistletoe to make me kiss you.”

They waved their hand by his face to dismiss his flirt.

The car pulled over in front of a house that had colorful lights lined along the bushes. Bloodhound vaguely remembered the house from an old photo of Elliott that he had shown them.

“We’re here, honeybun.” Elliott got out of the car and walked to Bloodhound’s side to open their door for them. They were being quiet again.

Elliott slung an arm around their shoulders. A cold breeze blew at them, and Elliott scrunched his nose after it began to sting. “It’s cold!” As he shivered, the bells on his ugly Christmas sweater, which was made to look like the wearer was a Christmas tree, jingled loudly. He also had a giant roll of tinsel wrapped around his torso to add to the flashy look.

Bloodhound wrapped their arms around Elliott’s torso. “Then we should head inside.”

The two of them walked up the pathway to the door, and Bloodhound raised their hand to knock on the door, but slowly brought it back down before they could knock.

“Baby!” Elliott leaned in to kiss the front of their mask. “Don’t be nervous.”

“Ah, you just cured my worries,” they said sarcastically.

Elliott knocked on the door for them. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“Come in!” The familiar voice of Elliott’s mother yelled from inside.

Elliott opened the door slowly, and let out a gasp. Bloodhound reached up and placed a hand on his shoulder, unsure of what he was surprised about.

“PORK CHOP!” Elliott placed his mom’s presents on the end table, then kneeled on the floor and held his arms out. A plump brown dog-like creature jumped at him and gave him a flurry of kisses. “Your breath stinks, baby boy!”

Bloodhound chuckled and peered inside for Elliott’s mom. His mother was tall, with a warm, dark complexion. Her face was alluring even in her older age; they figured out where Elliott got his attractive looks from. She stood up from the couch, walked around Elliott who was playing with the dog on the floor, and approached them. “You must be Bloodhound!” Evelyn exclaimed.

They began to smile under their mask. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Evelyn.” They held out their gifts for her, and she gasped.

“You didn’t have to bring me anything,” she said. She ran her hand across the weaving they had made. It consisted of white, brown, and red cord. “It’s so pretty.”

“It is to bless you with life and wellness.” They held up the candle. It was a dark red color and had various flowers and leaves sprinkled inside the wax. “I also brought a candle.”

“You’re too sweet,” Evelyn held the candle to her nose. “Ooh, such a nice smell. Thank you!” She held her arms out, and Bloodhound went in for a quick hug. In the past, they probably would have declined shyly. Now, they realized the importance of showing affection.

Evelyn walked over to the dining table and placed the candle in the center, then brought the weaving to the wall and hung it so it was above the doorway leading into the kitchen. She then walked into a separate room and emerged with a different candle in her hands. “I had asked Eli what sorts of things you liked, and he said you burned a lot of herbs. So I figured, maybe you’d like a candle?”

They turned the candle over in their hands. This one was a light purple color. “It is beautiful. Thank you so much.”

Elliott began to listen in on the gift exchange. “You both got candles for each other? You’re too much alike.”

His mom reached a hand down and tousled his hair. He exclaimed loudly, claiming that his hair took hours to do. Bloodhound knew it didn’t take hours, but it took a good thirty minutes or so for him to get it ‘perfect’.

“I’m sure you two are hungry.” Evelyn gestured to the table. “Take a seat, and I can bring everything out.”

“Ah, would you like some help, Miss Witt?” Bloodhound followed her to the kitchen and she smiled gratefully.

It was silent between the two of them as they grabbed the plates and brought them out to the table. “I assume Eli has told you about his father and brothers,” Evelyn said, her voice quiet.

Bloodhound glanced up at her. “Yes,” they said after a moment, and nothing more.

“He’s a sweet boy. I’m surprised his enthusiasm about himself didn’t chase you away. Eli…” She laughed a bit. “He is a little full of himself, but he’s really a generous person. I’ve noticed that he’s been a lot more honest, emotional, and happier since he met you.”

Shyly, Bloodhound shrugged slightly. “He has been a big influence in my life, as well. He seems so without worry, that you cannot help but fall into the same mindset as him.”

“I’m happy. I’m happy for both of you! You two deserve it.” She brought the last plate out to the table. “Eli! Stop messing around with Pork Chop, he’s too old to be playing around like that.”

Elliott pretended to cover the dog’s ears. “Ma! He’s still just a baby puppy, right Pork Chop?” His tone rose baby-voice level to enunciate that Pork Chop was an infant, rather than nearing his twentieth birthday.

He got up from the floor and sat at the table. Evelyn pulled his plate away. “Wash your hands; you have doggy slobber all over them.”

Elliott held his hands to his tummy and sighed. “Hungry…” He sauntered to the bathroom and washed his hands quickly, then came back to the table. He sat down with a huff. “Good?”

Evelyn squinted her eyes as if she was inspecting his hands. “Good enough.”

Bloodhound watched the interaction while trying to hold back a laugh. They looked over and saw Elliott cover his plate and dig in.

Rolling her eyes, Evelyn said, “At least chew, Eli!”

“Itch sho dam guhd,” Elliott muttered, his mouth stuffed.

Slowly, Bloodhound added some ham and mashed potatoes to their plate. They did not want to grab too much; eating with their mask on was a difficult task.

When everyone had gotten some food, they cut off a small piece of ham and brought the fork up. Slowly lifting their mask, they guided the fork underneath and into their mouth.

Elliott looked up at them after a moment, much like the way a person will absentmindedly and often look at their crush or lover. He cursed silently at himself.  _ I should have given it to them earlier.  _ It wouldn’t be much use tonight when he gave it to them after they had already eaten here!

 

 

Bloodhound glanced up at Elliott after they felt him pushing his foot against theirs. This was common at home when they ate dinner, or when they were sitting on the couch together, so they assumed he just wanted to be in contact with them in some way. But he motioned to his food and then down to Pork Chop, who was sitting underneath the table, waiting for some scraps.

They nodded slowly, tore a little piece of ham from the slice, and held it out for Pork Chop. The dog jumped up and happily grabbed the treat. After he had eaten it, he licked Bloodhound’s hand.

Elliott smiled gently as he watched Bloodhound pet the top of Pork Chop’s head affectionately. “I was worried he wouldn’t like you. He just needed a little encouragement.”

Bloodhound resisted the urge to get down on the floor and smother the dog in hugs and kisses.  _ He is so small and adorable. Also, a bit more dopey and energetic than Artur. _

 

 

After dinner, Bloodhound took the chance to play with Pork Chop while Elliott and his mother watched Christmas movies on the television.

Bloodhound imagined what having a dog at home would be like. They knew Artur would probably be apprehensive at first, then quickly warm up when he realized that a pooch would be easier to mess around with than Elliott.

When the credits rolled, Elliott stretched his arms and groaned. “It’s already near midnight!”

Evelyn yawned. “Santa won’t come if you guys stay any longer. Plus, I’m tired. I’m an old lady; I can’t party all night like I used to.”

Getting up, he sighed. “Wow, just kicking us out like that?” He held out his hand for her.

His mom grabbed his hand and lifted herself from the couch. “Give me a hug first.”

Elliott embraced her tightly and kissed her cheek. “Love you, Mom.”

She hugged him, then pulled back after a moment. “Your present! I almost forgot.” She walked over to a staircase and began to go downstairs. She came back and held a small box out to him. “I knew you mentioned something about you being a little too visible when you used a swarm of decoys…”

Elliott cocked his eyebrow, then quickly opened the box. It was full of about a dozen circular pads.

“You put them on the little circle things on your suit. They detect your surroundings and cover you so that you become practically invisible.” She smiled up at him. “Maybe this will help you be almost as good as Bloodhound.”

“Hey, I’m pretty good… I bet if I tried I could be better than Bloodhound.” Elliott took one out and inspected it. “Thank you, Ma. This is some hefty tech.”

“I’m glad you like it.” Evelyn went in for one last hug, then turned to Bloodhound. “I’m so glad I finally got to meet you!”

Bloodhound held their arms out for a hug. “I am glad as well. The food was delicious, Miss Witt.”

“Thank you, sweetheart. You’re welcome here whenever you’d like, and you can bring Eli along I guess.”

Elliott sighed as he said goodbye to Pork Chop with many hugs and kisses. “It’s really starting to feel like you like them more than me.”

“I love you, Eli,” she said.

“Love you, too…”

Bloodhound reached down and patted the top of Pork Chop’s head. “Goodbye, _barnið hvolpur,_ ” they whispered.

Evelyn and Pork Chop stood at the door and she blew kisses to Elliott and Bloodhound as the two of them made their way to the cab waiting.

In the car, Elliott yawned. “Maybe I’m getting old, too! I just want to sleep.”

“You are only thirty, dearest.”

“Baby, you’re supposed to say I’m only just hitting my mid-twenties!” He reached over for the candle that his mother had given them. “Lemme smell.”

He brought it to his nose and took a whiff. “Lavender-y and vanilla-y. Yummy.” He handed it back to them. “I have a present for you at home,” he added.

“Is gift-giving not usually done on Christmas day?” Bloodhound smelled the candle and felt their cheeks tingle. This would become one of their favorites.

“I’m too excited to wait!” Elliott shivered a bit. It was chilly in the cab. “I wanna give it to you. Tomorrow we can watch dorky movies and you can show me how to celebrate Yule. Anyways, by the time we get home, it will already be past midnight. So technically Christmas Day.”

Bloodhound noticed him begin to tense up to keep warm, and they scooted closer to him in the backseat. “Should I give you my gift as well?”

“If you’d like. I wonder what it is? The only thing I asked 'Santahound' for this year was lots of kisses.”

They linked their arm with his and leaned their head against his shoulder. “Maybe some coal.”   


“No. Kiss.”   


Bloodhound kissed their fingers gently, then brought their fingers up to Elliott’s soft lips.

“You’re a dork.”   


“I am your dork.” They turned to look out their window and smiled at the sight outside. Large white flakes were beginning to fall. “Snow,” they whispered.

 

 

Artur perched on their shoulder as Bloth shook the box lightly. The two of them were sitting on the couch, with Elliott’s arm around their shoulders.

“I’m not very good at wrapping presents,” he alluded to the random bare spots devoid of any wrapping. “Open, open, open.”   


“Calm down,  _ elskan. _ I am taking in the moment.” They slowly peeled off the wrapping paper.

Elliott whined. “Houndy, I want you to see what I got you!”

Chuckling, Bloth took the lid off of the box. They gaped at what was inside.

With a nervous smile, Elliott gazed at them. “Okay, I can explain it. So, like, your mask. It’s not your actual mask so don’t worry, but I copied the design as much as possible. Pretty realistic, right? Anyways, the fr-”

“Eli,” they whispered. Taking the mask out of the box, they held it up in front of them. It really did look exactly like the original, with all the little details and everything.

“Check the front.” Elliott could barely sit still, he was so giddy. “The mouth.”

Bloth carefully pulled at the mouthpiece and it came off with a click. Just like he had joked about on that night long ago.  “Wait, Eli. You remembered?”

“Of course I did. I- It was the night we first kissed. You came over for pizza and booze, and we talked about a mask that could let you eat and drink. I was so wasted, but that night stayed in my mind,” Elliott said.

They placed the mouthpiece back on. “You…”   


Elliott reached his hand up to caress their cheek. “Aw, cutie. Do you like it?”   


“I love it. I love you. Elliott, I cannot believe you actually remembered.”

“I’m so glad.” He kissed their cheek. “You don’t wear a mask around the house, but I figured if you do go out to eat or drink it’ll be easier… I should have given it to you before we went to my mom’s. I’m sorry.”   


Bloth leaned over and hugged Elliott. “No, I love it. Thank you.” They smiled up at him, their cheeks a slight pink tint. “Now for your gift.”   


Elliott watched as they got up from the couch and went to their room. Artur stayed at the couch and stared at him. Reaching into his pocket, Elliott grabbed a small felt mouse toy and held it out to the bird, who gladly took it with a chirp. Bloth returned with a box that was wrapped only a bit better than Elliott’s gift to them.

“I cannot wrap that well, either,” they admitted. Handing the box to Elliott, they laughed as he shook the box by his ear.

“You can’t really hear anything.” He pulled off the decorative paper and opened the box, being a lot more impatient than Bloth was. Elliott pulled out a long, grey scarf.

They bashfully spun the engagement ring on their finger. “I made it because I know you love to keep up your appearance… I saw somewhere that scarves are fashionable now. I figured you could wear it in or out of the Games.”   


Elliott ran his hand across it. “It’s so soft and warm!”   


“Do you really like it?”   


“Baby! It’ll look great on me! It’s so pretty. You made it yourself?” Elliott put it over his shoulders and posed a bit.

“Yes, it was easy. Just some weaving and such…” Their voice was quiet. Elliott could see how shy they were.

He gently moved their head to face him so that he could kiss them. “I love it,” he mumbled against their lips.

Bloth pulled away before he could kiss them again. They dug in their pocket for a moment before pulling out what looked to be a bundle of leaves.

“Ooh, you actually have mistletoe?” Elliott grabbed the holiday plant and raised it above their heads.

They kissed him lightly. “Of course,  _ kæru _ .” Slowly, they left a trail of gentle kisses along his jawline and stopped at his ear.

A shiver went through Elliott’s body. “Do you happen to know why everyone kisses under the mistletoe?”   


Pausing to tease him, they felt his body begin to pull closer to theirs. “The god Baldr,” they began and took care to enunciate any rolling of the tongue or lilts in their accent as they whispered the story into his ear. “He was the son of the goddess Frigg and the god Odin. When their son was prophesied to die, she went around to every plant and animal in the world to make them promise to her that they would not harm her son in any way.”   


Elliott had lowered the plant by now, for his arm was getting tired. He wanted to have Bloth’s beautiful, strong body under his and waste the night away by showing his love through intimacy. But, the sad truth was that they loved to tease him. He carefully leaned in and grazed his lips against their sensitive neck. “Go on,” he said.

They wrapped their arms around his body. “She had forgotten to ask mistletoe if it promised to never hurt her son. When Baldr was shot by an arrow of mistletoe made by the god Loki and killed, rather than be angry that her son was dead, his mother Frigg had sworn to keep peace and kiss anyone who passed underneath the plant.”   


“That’s kind of a sad story.” Elliott rested his head on their shoulder. “And romantic.”   


“Frigg is the goddess of love and fertility.”

He played with their gorgeous hair absentmindedly.

“Elliott?” They chirped up.

“Mhm?”

They paused. “Can we get a dog?”   


Leaning back quickly, Elliott held their shoulders and looked into their eyes. “You want a dog?”

Bloth nodded. “They are so cute.”   


Elliott cupped their cheek in his hand. “Of course,” he said. “As many as you want.” He pulled them close and snuggled deep into the crook of their neck. He was very tired. “Bloth?”   


Bloth raised a hand to the back of his head and slowly petted him, which comforted both animals and humans alike. “Yes, beloved?”

“I hope we can spend all kinds of holidays together. And for a lot of years to come.”   


They smiled to themself. Artur could be heard snoring on a couch cushion, and they could feel Elliott’s breathing slow down as he became more and more drowsy. Bloth didn’t want to forget this. They didn’t want to forget any of this. Celebrating the holidays with the person who helped them open up and realize life didn’t have to be all about fighting was wonderful. They felt a yawn climb into their throat. “We will, Eli,” they replied.   


“I love you, Houndy,” Elliott murmured. “Happy Yule and Merry Christmas.”

“I love you, too,” Bloth said. “Good Yule and Merry Christmas to you, as well.”

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to leave some constructive criticism, especially if you find pronoun errors and such. Thank you for reading!


End file.
